Reincarnation is Troublesome
by TheKaiSenpai
Summary: Don't get involved, don't get involved, don't get- screw it. I'm too deep in the water just by being born. Might as well have fun with this I guess. OC/Self-insert, AnkoxOC, NaruSaku. Gets dark at Chapter 5.
1. Prologue Part 1

**I don't own Naruto. Well, unless you mean in a separate dimension in which I rule all. Then I own everything. But sadly you don't so neither do I.**

 **A/N: Hello one and all! I know self/inserts are a bit looked down on but I figured it'd be fun. I'll update this pretty rarely depending on how much people like it, but don't expect me to favor this over the _Redemption_ works which are still in progress. It's kinda hard since I work early every day of the week and when I get home I'm bone dead tired. I'm not used to it yet! Anyways, enjoy!**

 **XXXXX**

 **Prologue Pt. 1**

 **XXXXX**

Hey, my name's Kai. Well, Kaeru. Kai is more of a nickname. Now, I used to be called something else entirely, but... that was a long time ago, and I've kinda forgotten it. Don't get me wrong, my memory's fantastic. Recently. It's a bit hard to explain so let me start from the beginning. Hi, my name's Kaeru, and I'm a reincarnation. Yeah, yeah, bitch all ya want. It happened. It just happened in a really weird way. See, I loved Naruto in my past life. The story, the action, the (sorta) deep characters... Well, as it turns out being a self-proclaimed nerd doesn't look good in front of the ladies. Especially when you have very little social experience. Long story short I ended up dying alone in a cave cornered by the mountain lions I'd once called family. Fun, right? And after all the turtle soup I'd made them. And BINGO nights! Ugh. Last time I trust those big cats. Next thing I know _bam!_ I'm being birthed. Definitely scarring. Lots of screaming. Both from my mother, me, and I think my father. His hand was being crushed, but when he told me all he'd said was, "It was troublesome". Brain-fucking aside I was born to Uchiha Emiko and Nara Shatone. Yeah... they weren't exactly married at the time. Kind of a hush hush affair at 18 and 19 respectively and poof! Nine months later here I am! It had been the 24th of October, about eleven years before the Kyuubi attacked.

Now of course mama kept me a secret at first. She pretty much became a pariah to the Uchiha Clan because folks figured out my dad wasn't an Uchiha. She couldn't shop within the clan compound most of the time either. Dad took care of us though. He'd scrounge up some savings from whatever missions he ran and give us the extra in secret. Of course being completely aware as a baby I knew all this before mom told me when I was four. Another thing that mom was shunned for was never having unlocked her _Sharingan_. Stupid right? But either way, not many people liked her. Surprisingly, the Uchiha were like the village trendsetters. Whatever they liked, others liked. Whatever they didn't like... Well, you get the picture. Anyway, mom's only real friend was a surprisingly young Sarutobi Hiruzen during the Second Shinobi World War. I guess a lot of important stuff happened after my birth, like Minato meeting Kushina and crap but I didn't really care at the time. I was a baby and still trying to figure out what the fuck just happened. Five years later I was in the academy and sorta accepting who I had become. Of course, my familial lines supported my personality almost completely. From the Nara side anyway.

 **XXXXX**

"Kaeru-kun, it's time to get up!" was the first thing I heard that morning. Today was the day I'd enter the academy to be a ninja for my second year. Ugh. I had the maturity and intellect of an old (albeit hermit) man and here I was going to the equivalent of second grade. But even if I didn't it was still _so much work...!_ Agh, I'd always hated boring crap like this. Instead of getting up, I decided to turn over under my bedsheets and block out the morning noise. Like an idiot. My door slammed open, threatening to break the somewhat flimsy wood. I jumped and looked at the being of my doom- I mean mother. Her left eye was twitching and she had a very angry expression on her face. "Dammit Kaeru, get your lazy butt out of bed before I make you _train_ more!" I ran into the other room faster than Minato would ever move in his life. Emiko's training was just sadism pure and simple!

As I ran I passed Shatone who had probably just came in. "Hey dad," I said as I bolted past him, "bye dad." I paused, and he slowly raised his hand in the air in greeting.

"Hey," he replied. "You're missing your clothes, gaki." I facepalmed and slowly marched back to my room, my mom staring smugly down at me. I would never live this down. It was almost as bad as the time I got up early to go to school in my past life. On a weekend.

"See what happens when you have to rush, Kaeru-kun?" she asked snidely. She may have been being a smart-ass, but it was how she showed her love. Something I learned from her quickly. I rolled my eyes in response.

"Troublesome woman," I grumbled as she left, clothes set out on my bed. "Dammit..." I glared at the casual wear of the Uchiha Clan. Light gray shorts, navy blue shirt with the clan emblem on the back, sandals. Ugh. And whitey-tighteys with the Uchiha Clan emblem printed all over them. I'd loved Itachi before, and knowing he'd worn these as a kid made me laugh every time, but wearing them myself? Kill me now. Unfortunately it was trial by fire and I put everything on, just as mom finished making omelets for my lunch and packing it. She gushed over me. Moms are so weird.

"Oooo~ooh, isn't he so handsome, Shatone-kun?" she cood. Shatone glanced at me and shrugged, grunting.

"He looks like an Uchiha I guess," he replied in a relaxed drawl, which was usual for him. And he'd be right. My hair was, like in my past life, completely jet black. It was cut short in a bob, which wouldn't last for long if it was the last thing I did. I got healthy tan skin from my dad and got his angled face shape, which would become more angular as I grew older. I also got his lanky form, and toned muscles from my mom's side. I sighed. I'd have to start taking physical training seriously now. "Just let him go Emi-chan. He'll be late if you don't."

"Alright, alright," mom sighed, smiling at me and handing over my lunch and pushing me out the door. "You know where the academy is right?"

"Yes mom..."

"You'll make plenty of friends?"

"Ok mom..."

"And bring back a girlfriend!"

"Moo~om!" I glared at my dad as he guffawed. Traitor. I sighed and headed through the streets to the academy building near the Hokage residence. It was actually pretty calming though. For most of my previous life I never had a chance to just walk around. Cars and other motor vehicles would crowd the roads and we didn't have many walkways. This was something I liked about this world. It was peaceful for the most part. I could see stores and vendors opening for the morning. Children playing on the streets. The Second Shinobi World War had ended just a few short months ago with the pact between Suna and Konoha standing... decently. It was a fragile relationship that would end in the next two decades for a brief period. As a youth I'd written countless stories about Naruto and his friends, most of which never saw the light of day. I knew most of the major events and when they'd happen. My issue now was on whether or not to act on them. It was a hard decision. One I'd later come to love, and regret.

My trip to the Shinobi Academy was short. The Uchiha Clan was still trusted, and the walls hadn't risen yet. In fact, I was already being labeled a prodigy because of my adequate fighting skill for my age. Really it was only brawling combined with what Interceptor Style my mother taught me, but it was enough to beat down many of the other Uchiha my age. I already had a fighting style I wanted to use. One that relied on dodging and striking at critical moments while preserving energy. In my former life I hated getting injured, and it would hinder me here. My best bet was to make it my advantage and train my speed, precision and power together. As an Uchiha I had a bit of an advantage. I also noted that in another year Itachi and Shisui Uchiha would be born. With those two growing at hopefully the same way and rate, I'd be able to train alongside them to further my progression. But as I was now, it was workable. I didn't feel like skipping ahead like Itachi or Kakashi. I was still new to this world and so used to the old one. Trying to change so fast would hinder me more than help me. It could get me killed even.

"Kaeru-kun!" I smiled as a voice called out my name. Umino Iruka. We'd met only a few weeks ago but he still saw me as a big brother figure. It was weird. I was friends with the man who'd later shape Naruto's early days. "You made it!" I turned to face the young first year at the doorway to the academy. Official teachers had been implemented just last year and the curriculum was still in its wartime categories. We'd be learning chakra manipulation and weapon handling while those of Iruka's age would be going over the basic materials. Math, science, history, theory, the like. At the end of the year I'd be expected to know how to mold chakra and the three basic academy jutsu, and be proficient in one Taijutsu style, even if it was the academy basic.

"Of course I did," I replied to the future teacher with a slight smirk. "If I didn't than my mom would kill me." I was so tempted to add _"It's such a drag"_ , but held it back. My lack of motivation and tendency to underexaggerate things had carried over. "Besides, I'm glad I got past all that theory crap and can finally learn how to utilize chakra." Iruka pouted as we walked to our classrooms.

"It's not fair Kaeru-nii! I want to learn the same stuff as you!" he proclaimed. I laughed a bit and reached over to ruffle his hair.

"Be patient bud, you'll get to someday," I replied. "Hell, I'll bet you'll do even better than me someday." He nodded enthusiastically and rushed to class as the morning bell rang. I yawned, in no rush to get to class. I ended up a few minutes late, the instructor giving me a disappointed look that I brushed off with ease. I sat in the back row alongside a familiar violet-haired girl tied in a fanned ponytail. She rolled her eyes at me as she took notes from the teacher's instruction. Mitarashi Anko, the future student of Orochimaru. Girl who hated my guts. The period was quick since I pretty much dozed off through it. I didn't bother to study much, just passively listened to the teacher. Even still I mostly got good marks. I was pretty smart in my last life and could pretty much do the exact same thing as I did now.

"Wake up, _baka_!" Anko growled, pushing me off my seat. I grunted, slowly picking myself up of the floor. Damn that hurt. "We're going outside for Taijutsu sparring." She got up after hassling me and left the room, me trailing behind slightly.

"Oi," I called out to her. I was promptly ignored. "Yo, Anko-chan." _That_ caught her attention.

"Don't call me that _baka_!" she yelled, throwing a dango stick at me suddenly and trimming a few hairs from my head. I paused but kept walking, my fight-or-flight instincts kicking in. As we walked out into the field, I could see a few future teachers and important figures. The instructor drew a large chalk circle on the ground and picked up a clipboard.

"Today we'll be starting your Taijutsu training," the obvious Aburame stated with a dry tone. "Before we begin, I wish to assess your Taijutsu capabilities. As such, I will pair you with your sparring partner for this year. You may not switch partners, and it will be up to you both to train outside of school hours. Now the partners will be as follows..." I tuned him out, leaning against the fence and closing my eyes. I didn't really care for this, being able to trounce pretty much all of my classmates at this point. Sure, maybe later down the line I'd have some trouble, but for now it would be as easy as dodge and smack some kiddie asses around. "...finally, Uchiha Kaeru will be partnered up with Hyuuga Kenkin." I looked over at the final figure lacking a partner. She was a young girl about a year older than me with short raven tresses and a lithe figure hidden beneath cream robes. She had a soft, rounded face and small upturned nose that was actually pretty cute. Her eyes, of course, were a clear white. On her forehead was a mark I'd never forget. The Caged Bird Seal. She was of the Branch Family. Great. Slowly the girl approached me and looked me over.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Uchiha-san," she greeted with a small smile. My eye twitched at the formality. Fuck that.

"Nice to meet ya too, Kenkin-chan," I smirked and offered her my fist to bump. It'd been a habit I'd gotten from my previous life. The girl blinked a few times before hesitantly bumping my fist with hers. Nothing really special happened, but I felt a bit of a connection to her. She stood by me as the first matches took place. Really it was just kids trying to look cool while fighting and getting humiliated spectacularly by their own half-assed moves. Until Anko that was. While the others were nothing special, Anko took out her partner, Gekko Hayate, extremely quickly. She was efficient. She was brutal. And she made that kid black and blue. It was glorious. As the poor boy was carted to the infirmary, it was my turn.

To be honest, I was doubting myself. The Hyuuga, from what I knew, trained from a young age. This six year old probably had at least two years of training experience fighting others. I only had one. I tensed as I stood at my corner of the circle as Kenkin took up a traditional Jyuuken stance. Well fuck. I readied myself, copying her stance, albeit in a bastardized way. It was a style that I'd been making for the last month, and I intended it to rely on deception as well as pure improvisation of already known forms. Kenkin seemed to gasp as I stood ready.

"Ready?" the instructor asked. We both nodded as I noticed Kenkin's veins start to bulge around her eyes. Well double fuck me right up the ass. "Hajime!" Kenkin instantly twirled into the air and lunged at me, hands already positioned to strike. My right eye twitched as I spun and narrowly dodged around her attack. I could feel the chakra spike from her palm beside my head. I reacted quickly and did the only thing I could think of. I knocked her hands away and bitch slapped her.

" _Itai_!" she shouted as she fell to the ground. I could hear barely contained laughter from the sidelines, echoing my own held back laughter of disbelief. My first academy spar and I bitch slap a Hyuuga. Oh man, my ass was grass if her family got word of this. She looked up and glared a me as I realized that the round hadn't been settled yet. I rushed over to her as she tried to get up and kicked her in the stomach, sending her tumbling on the ground. She repositioned herself to stand just before she crossed the boundary line, glaring at me as if it would kill me.

Quickly she moved forward, catching me off guard and landing a single palm strike to my chest, shutting down a vein. I grunted as pain shot through my body. She moved her other arm towards me, intent on shutting me down before I could react. Unfortunately, I didn't move in time. Four more palm strikes and I was on the ground, gasping for air.

"Point, Kenkin-chan," the Aburame announced. It took me a few minutes to get back up, the instructor pretty much forcing the girl to unseal my tenketsu and veins. "Are both combatants ready?" He asked. I nodded with my opponent. "Round two, hajime!" I growled, taking the initiative this time. I lunged at her, speeding across the circle as fast as I could and reaching her in seconds. Her eyes widened as I leaped into the air, spun, and used the momentum to kick her across the face, launching her outside the boundary circle. I panted, watching her skid across the ground and slowly stand up. Dammit. Her strikes still hurt and I was sore. At least this time I could pull through. We reset our positions wordlessly and waited for the instructor to speak. "Hajime!" We both burst towards each other this time. I grunted and panted as I dodged each strike thrown at me, at times tumbling back on the ground to avoid being hit. She was on the offensive, using her Jyuuken. Jyuuken. That's chakra usage in Taijutsu. Could I do the same? I mentally grinned. My mother had taught me the basics of chakra manipulation during her training, and I decided to use it. I focused chakra into my fingertips and struck out, colliding her fingers with my own. Chakra blasted visibly from her hand as orangish-red sparks flew from my own. I winced, feeling a burning sensation from my hand. Kenkin's eyes widened in surprise and I took advantage of her surprise and ignored the stinging, rushing forward with my other hand and shoving my palm against her stomach, releasing chakra from my palm at full blast into her. She flew with a small crackle of the same sparks out of the circle.

Despite the pain my hands were in and the exhaustion, I laughed. It was a tired laugh born from mental exhaustion. Hearing that I'd won, I fell to my knees and passed out.

 **XXXXX**

My body ached. And _not_ in the good way. My eyes were heavy and my joints were stiff. Fabulous. I groaned a bit and could hear shuffling beside what I assumed was the infirmary bed I was laying in.

"Oh Kami, are you alright?" I heard a voice fret over me. Kenkin? "I was so worried you were dead!"

"The _baka_ wouldn't die so easily," I heard Anko's supposedly uncaring voice speak next to the first one. "The idiot just got chakra exhaustion, nothing fatal."

"I was told chakra exhaustion _was_ fatal Anko-san..." Kenkin chidded. Two soft hands rested on my chest. "Are you alright K-Kaeru-k-k-kun?" That made me smile. The girl was trying to be familiar to me. My eyes slowly allowed me to open them, and I saw Kenkin leaning over me.

"Just great," I replied, my voice sounding raspy and dry. "Never better."

"See? What did I tell ya?" I watched as Anko punched my shoulder. I grunted in pain. "Man up, baby." She gave me a teasing smirk. Was it me or was she giving me some respect? "The nurse says not to move for the rest of school. Don't worry Kaeru- _kun_ , I'll bring you our homework for the day." She laughed and left me, with Kenkin leaving soon after. I groaned and closed my eyes again, letting myself succumb to sleep. At least one good thing came out of this.

 **XXXXX**

A few months later would see me in Training Ground 3 sparring with Kenkin. Despite her shock of me being able to pull off a few Jyuuken stances and moves, she helped me develop my own style from it. We had a bit of a rivalry going on between Anko and Hayate, but it was all in good fun. Anko was obviously the stronger fighter, and Hayate usually provided backup support. They helped us in endurance while we helped them fight more experienced fighters in Kenkin's case, and more unpredictable fighters in my case. It was _awesome_. Already my mother had been helping me in chakra manipulation, letting me use chakra in my hands with minimal burns. Not only that, but we'd gotten started on water walking! Of course we were learning that in school, but a little extra practice never hurt anyone.

The sparks from my fight with Kenkin never reappeared in all this time though. Try as hard as I might, nothing showed up. When I brought it up with her, Kenkin provided the answer. Because her _Byakugan_ was active during the match she saw that I was using two different chakra types and compressing them together when I struck, though she admitted my mixing was pretty bad resulting in wasted chakra. When mom heard about that she told me about elemental affinities and how, sometimes, they could be used together, and suggested that maybe I had something going here. Even with Kenkin's help though, we couldn't recreate the event.

For now though, I had a decent Taijutsu style. I called it the _Gimanken_ (Deceptive Fist). It was based solely on deceptive movements relying on body control and fucking with someone's head. Movements like leaning right while moving left. Of course, most of it was just bits and pieces. The rest was sporadic and improvised. Something even a _Sharingan_ had trouble predicting. Speaking of the _Sharingan_ I was working to unlock mine early. I'd been training a bit with my dad and had asked him to come at me until I was passed out. He reluctantly relented, fearing mom's wrath, but provided the brutal regimen anyway. He understood my reasons and let me know that if he thought I was taking it too far, he'd stop immediately. It was a term I could live with.

I panted as I fell to my knees, Kenkin doing the same in front of me. Under a nearby tree Anko watched with general disinterest, popping a dango into her mouth. Over the last few months she'd begun to respect me as a fighter if nothing else. She stood and walked over to us.

"Are you two done flirting?" she asked, smirking. Kenkin immediately flushed, stammering. On her seventh birthday a few days ago we'd accidentally kissed when I tripped onto her, moving to give her her present. Anko hadn't shut up since. It was probably only the fifth kiss I'd ever received in my two lives.

"Shut it gaki," I responded, scowling as my face unwillingly flushed a bit. "I'm starved. Food is on me if you're coming." I quickly moved away, my right eye twitching as I tried to ignore Anko's comment. Dammit, this was getting annoying. I'd never married in my last life and I was a loner at heart. Well, a social loner if that makes sense. But now with Anko's teasing I was noticing how cute they both were in their own ways. I dashed the thoughts from my head as I headed into the village, hoping to find someplace new to eat. I wandered aimlessly, noticing both of my... friends had followed me. Finally I stopped in front of a someday iconic stand. Ichiraku's Ramen. I could smell it from outside. I'd always loved ramen, even as a kid in my past life. Even more when I first tasted the real thing, not the home packets. I hadn't had ramen in so long... Fuck it. I'm going in. I grinned and entered the stand, a smile spreading across my face as I saw the delicious bowls of hot, heavenly goodness. Damn did I miss this stuff. I sat on the barstool, Anko and Kenkin sitting on my left and right respectively, as I waited for service. A remarkably young Teuchi appeared from the back curtain and smiled at us.

"Welcome you three!" he greeted us. He must have been in his twenties. He just had to be. "What can I get you youngsters?" He rested his hands on the countertop as he waited for our orders. He looked us over. "Oh, first time customers, hm? Well, here I have a free first bowl policy, provided you come back for more of course. I'm Teuchi, the owner of this joint. Good to have you here." He winked at us.

"I'll have a beef, please," I requested.

"Miso for me, please," Kenkin asked after me. Anko took a moment.

"Eh, gimme pork."

"Coming right up!" Teuchi exclaimed, readying the three bowls. Only a few moment later I heard crying from behind the curtain. That of a baby.

"Dammit," someone cursed from back there, "Teuchi-kun! Get your ass back here and help me clean up Ayame-chan!" My eyes widened as Teuchi winced, placing our bowls in front of us.

"Excuse me you three," he whispered to us, rushing to the back. "Coming honey!" I watched amused for a moment as my two friends burst into laughter. I took the time to eat though. Hot ramen was good ramen and good ramen should not be wasted. _Ever._ The two calmed down after a minute and ate alongside me. We ate in silence. Well, I did. The two girls were having fun talking around me about... some sale down at the market district. I really didn't care much about it. I had just finished my bowl when two figures entered the stand. My eyes widened for a brief moment. Their hair was unmistakable. Uzumaki Kushina and Namikaze Minato. Around their mid to upper teens to be sure, but it looked like they were already close. And Kushina was _glowing_. I stifled a smile and a laugh and paid for my and the girls' meals, simply glancing at the happy couple every so often. Here I had a choice. Get involved in their lives or let things play out normally? I thought for a moment. Get involved. I eventually planned on meeting Naruto. It would be good if I had experience with his parents. I stood and walked over to them.

"Oi," I raised my hand in greeting, getting their attention. "My name is Uchiha Kaeru, it's nice to meet you."

 **XXXXX**

The following six years only had a few notable moments, but they were big ones. First off, my mother was hiding something. Something big. At first I'd played it off as simply bizarre, but now... Now it was borderline freaky. It happened during my third year at the academy when I was six. I'd just gotten home and I arrived just in time to see Uchiha Fugaku leave my house. The clan head at my house... He was muttering something about 'going on vacation' over and over again. When I went in and asked my mom about it she completely shot down my questions, something she'd never done before. It happened a few other times with Hyuuga Hiashi and the Sandaime, both of them doing things that my mother would approve of like allowing Kenkin to teach me in more advanced Jyuuken stances or allowing us to graduate early at age ten, much to my chagrin.

Secondly, my father and I unlocked the first tomoe of my _Sharingan_ during the end of my third year. It took a hell of a beatdown but it was worth it. I could see more clearly and react much more efficiently. My once impractical Taijutsu style became usable to a considerable amount. We also discovered my two main affinities, _Katon_ and _Raiton_ respectively. It was a shock a year later when I'd trained them that I was able to force them together, creating what I called the _Kiraton_ (Spark Release). Of course I still burned myself, but it was progress. On my sixth year at the academy I graduated alongside Anko and Kenkin as Team 4, and were assigned under Orochimaru as our sensei. A year before the Kyuubi attack with a perverse man as a teacher, liable to kill Kenkin and I if we weren't careful. I tried to remember the date of his betrayal but it wasn't coming to me. All I could do was wait.

 **XXXXX**

"Kukukukuku... I'm afraid I have some bad news children," Orochimaru announced at the gates of Training Ground 44. "You're not yet a genin team. That was all fabrications of the academy." I sat in silence as Kenkin gasped. Anko was clearly upset.

"What!?" she screamed in outrage, jumping to her feet. Orochimaru gave her a condescending smile.

"Hush now, Anko-chan," the pale skinned man told her, giving her a look that threatened pain if she didn't sit. Though she grumbled, Anko obliged. Orochimaru than looked over each of us. "As I said, none of you are genin quite yet. The tests you took at the academy were merely to rate your potential. To weed out the weak." He paused to let the information sink in. His face seemed to hint at amusement at Kenin's and Anko's expressions of turmoil. He frowned at my emotionless gaze though. "Kaeru-kun." He singled me out. "You don't seem very surprised. Why is that?" I shrugged in response.

"Any ninja worth their weight in kunai can perform as well as we did," I pulled out of my ass on the spot. "It would take more than that to actually be a decent shinobi. I figured there'd be some sort of post-test to analyze just how well we can perform on the field." I glanced at Anko, who's eyes seemed to shine a bit.

"He's right," she admitted. "Any civilian can do what we did at the academy. There's a difference between a schoolyard brawl and fighting on a mission." Orochimaru seemed to be looking at us differently.

"Interesting observations..." he complimented. "Kukukukuku... But now you have to pass my test, and if you fail... I'll send all three of you back to the academy from year one." Anko's face seemed to twitch with irritation, but otherwise we all silently accepted the consequences. "Good to see you brats understand. Now here's what we'll be doing..." He reached into the pocket of his jonin vest and pulled out a single bell. Oh hell no. "Your objective is to take this bell from me before the sun sets." He motioned towards the midday sun. "I'd say you have around eight hours... If you fail to do so, you all will sent back to the academy. There is only pass or fail as a team." He paused so we could absorb the information, then motioned behind himself. "As soon as we enter this forest we will begin. Ah yes one more little tidbit... Try to stay alive. Kukuku..." He leapt back into the forest faster than I could see with my naked eye, his creepy laughter echoing in the trees.

 **XXXXX**

 **Omake:**

 _Kenkin's Diary, Pt. 1_

Dear diary,

I'm so happy I bought you! I think I'll write in you lots! Um... Let's see... I guess I should start about me, right? Well, my name is Hyuuga Kenkin. It's a pleasure to write in you. My best friends are Mitarashi Anko-chan and Uchiha Kaeru-kun. I'm nine years old, and am part of the Branch Family of the Hyuuga. My family home includes my older brother, my younger sister, my father, my mother, and myself. I love them all very dearly. I hear many of the other people refer to my family as strict and uptight, but that simply isn't true! My family is just very traditional and our bloodline must be protected at almost all costs. Though I dislike this seal upon my head, it is for the greater good. I can't help it if it makes me... vulnerable.

Anko-chan has tried to help me, but she can only do so much. I don't believe Kaeru-kun is aware, and I'd like to keep it that way. I can't imagine he'd ever fall for me if he knew my burden. I'm glad Anko-chan has agreed to keep my secret. You'll keep my secrets too, right Diary-kun? Ah, I should probably buy a chakra-specific lock seal first. I wouldn't want my brother or any of his friends to use you, would I? It wouldn't be a pleasant feeling. I have to go, it's time for my... midnight lessons. But I want this here so I can always remind myself why I smile.

I love Kaeru-kun. For being my first friend. I will rise every morning of my life to see him smile. Please... Let me see him smile. A real smile, not those fake smirks he hides behind. Not those pained eyes full of decades of anger and sadness and bitterness. I will endure so I can help him do the same.

With much love and affection,

Kenkin

 **A/N:**

 **Complain all you want, this is my final version of this chapter. The timeskip _will_ be filled when I want it too be. I'm guessing the most flak I'll receive will be for the omake. Nothing silly or funny there, it's one of the few serious ones on . I know it's a touchy issue but that's one of the reasons why I wrote it aside from building on Kenkin's character. I won't explain too much but I'll say this: This omake is a critical part of the story that I couldn't otherwise write. The omake will all be from the perspective of different characters and show a bit of behind the scenes. Things that explain later events that I can't do with a pure first person view from Kaeru. Humor isn't my best area in writing so please don't bash on me for it. Better yet, help me out some. :3 Anyway, hope you enjoyed.**

 **Ja ne.**


	2. Prologue Part 2

**Kaeru-kun doesn't own Naruto. Actually, I'm not exactly sure who this 'Naruto' is...?**

 **A/N: This is a troll. Feed me, nya. No, but really. I'm surprised I got much of a following from my first chapter. Thank you all! I'll be posting a list whenever I can of all the followers and favoriters of this story to thank them every few chapters. Anyways, you didn't come to see me talk, you came for a story! On with the show!**

 **XXXXX**

 **Prologue Pt. 2**

 **XXXXX**

 _"My name is Mitarashi Anko-sama!" The ponytailed girl shouted from atop her railing. I smirked and rolled my eyes, staring at the banner she'd made just for this event. "I like dango, little kids, my friends, dango, kicking ass, and kicking ass with dango!" I glanced over at Kenkin, who was sitting on the opposite side of Anko, who was trying to stifle her giggles. She was failing. Orochimaru, though, seemed little more than bored and a tad annoyed. "I hate perverts, hearing my parents when they're going at it, boys who hit on me, and people who steal my thunder! My dream? My dream is to be the greatest kunoichi to ever live!"_

 _"Me...?" Kenkin had fidgeted nervously on the steps leading up to the Hokage Monument that we'd be introducing ourselves at. She was actually a lot like Hinata now that I thought about it. Relatively kind, caring, and passionate about her family if I remembered correctly. "Huuu... My name is Hyuuga Kenkin. I very much love my family, and I love takoyaki. I like my dear friend Anko-chan, and... Kaeru-kun. I dislike pain, and I don't like my... midnight training." I gave her a curious glance as she looked over at me. I'd always been a paranoid individual, assuming the worst. But the short, worried look she gave me was all I needed. And she realized her slip-up. But to give her credit, she kept up a remarkably calm expression. "My dream is to be a wife... and to have a family who loves me..." I watched Orochimaru's expression. It was not one of compassion or pity. There were hints of those, yes, but it was mostly of... hunger... Desire... Like a predator anticipating its next meal. I felt a wave of protectiveness wash over me. Kenkin was my friend, and I would be damned if I let her be hurt any more!_

 _"My name... Is Uchiha Kaeru..." I sat with my elbows on my knees, my hands held together. I peered at Orochimaru over them. "My likes...? Well, I like Anko-chan and Kenkin-chan for starters. I like my parents and my little cousins Itachi-otouto and Shisui-otouto. I don't like traitors and liars." I made sure to glare at the_ Hebi Sannin _(Snake Sage)_ _when I said that. "My dream is to keep my friends safe." I closed my eyes and glanced over at Kenkin. "From_ anything _that might harm them." The girl gave me a soft, sorry smile, and slowly shook her head._

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure no Sato, T.G. 44, 1 Year Before Kyuubi)**

As we bounded through the trees, I noticed Kenkin's glances pass over me a few times. She may have tried to hide it with her _Byakugan_ but it couldn't break the feeling of being watched that I had whenever I was, duh, being watched. Of course, we were using her _Byakugan_ to mainly search for Orochimaru, the slippery bastard. I sighed as I felt her vision pass over me for a few more seconds. We had to get this out of the way, but after the exercise. Finally she spotted something.

"I found him," she spoke up, "Orochimaru-sensei is two kilometers to the north-east. He's in a clearing, standing patiently." I sighed. He was waiting for us. "Kaeru-kun, what do you suggest?" Anko looked over at me expectantly.

"Well, Nara- _baka_?" she teased with a smirk. Of course, look at the half Nara for the bright idea. "What brilliant plan do you have for us?" I sighed as we moved towards our future sensei.

"Give me a second." I thought for a minute. "Alright, here's what we do. Anko-chan, you still carry around your Chichi Chickens, right?"

"Hell yeah!"

 **XXXXX**

The look on the _baka_ snake's face was priceless. He was covered in bruises, and rubber chickens littered the clearing. Anko and Kenkin stood triumphantly over him, a singular bell twirling around the former's right index finger. I sat back against a nearby tree trunk, eating a ration bar. They were actually just granola, nuts, berries, and other things. Not as bland and tasteless as claimed to be.

The plan went off without trouble. In fact, it was pretty easy. Orochimaru never suspected a thing. As Orochimaru bandaged the last of his open wounds, he gave us a look of disbelief. "I can't believe I'm saying this... but that was impressive." I wasn't sure to be off-put or proud of that compliment. Really, it was too easy. And kinda boring. "Well, tomorrow we will start missions. Meet in front of the gates at eight in the morning... And don't be late..." With a single handsign, Orochimaru vanished in a pile of snakes. He may have been a twisted fucker, but damn did he have style. I smirked as a tiny rubber chicken fell with the snakes.

"Nice going 'Chichi'," I gave Anko a smug grin. "Guess we lucked out on that one."

"Well, now we know one of sensei's dislikes," she replied, rolling her eyes. "Coward." I filed the information away for later on. I smiled as I stood, walking over towards my two friends. I glanced at both of them, but rested my eyes on Kenkin, who started to fidget. We both knew what was coming.

"Kenkin-chan," I started, and she took a deep breath. I frowned and motioned to the way we came, having us walk so we could have a discussion. Anko seemed to have read the mood, but promptly decided to ignore it. "Your... 'midnight training'..." I felt Anko's eyes boring into my back from behind as Kenkin walked beside me. "Is it what I think it is...?"

"I have no idea what you mean Kaeru-kun," she said entirely too quickly, with a fake smile plastered on her face. I frowned, and her facade dropped. "I... I didn't want you to know..."

"Why?" I asked, "I could have helped you!" Kenkin shook her head vigorously.

"Nothing you do can help me..." tears threatened to spill from her eyes as she spoke, "My parents... My family... they control me completely..."

"How? They can't possibly control your seal can they?" I was met with silence. "Kenkin-chan...?"

"I am Hyuuga Kenkin... Eldest daughter of Hyuuga Henzin, now the Elder of the Hyuuga Clan..." she admitted. I froze. Henzin, the former clan head before Hiashi recently took over. Her family... She had been part of the Main Branch and had been branded regardless. I knew Hiashi's little brother was Hizashi, but _nobody_ ever mentioned a sister! And she said eldest sister...? Hiashi had two little sisters!? Wait...

"Who's involved in this 'training'...?" I asked, not really sure I wanted to know the answer. For a minute, nobody spoke. Then Kenkin admitted.

"My... brother and his friends..." My right eye twitched. He wouldn't... He was too good a person... But nobody ever mentioned Hinata's mother, just that she was beautiful and Hinata took after her.

"I said I'd protect my friends from _anything_ that would hurt them," I told her. Her teary eyes met mine. Her pale, intoxicating eyes... Dammit. "You can come stay with my family. You're officially an adult in the eyes of Konoha, so you can make your own choices."

"I-I..." she stammered, not quite sure what to make of my offer. I sighed and rested my hand on hers.

"Kenkin-chan," I stared her right in the eyes. "You're one of my best friends. I want to help you however I can. But you have to let me…" She looked at our hands and remained quiet, her face taking up a look of contemplation. I could see she was doubting the decision. I sighed, knowing there was only one way to get her to definitively take this chance to be safe. I didn't want to use this but I couldn't let her be abused. I leaned forward and pressed my lips against hers. She squeaked, but slowly reciprocated the advancement. "Kenkin-chan?" I muttered when we parted. I could see the fire in her eyes.

"I would be happy to live with you, Kaeru-kun!" she exclaimed, than quickly blushed a bright red once realizing what she'd said. I heard an annoying laughter from behind us, where Anko had fallen to her back and was rolling on the forest floor laughing. I sighed as we exited the forest. "Ano… Kaeru-kun?"

"Hm?"

"W-Would you please help me move out…?" I smiled and nodded, stretching as Kenkin and I headed towards the Hyuuga Compound, and Anko headed home. We waved goodbye to each other and ventured forward.

"Oi, Kenkin-chan." I spoke aloud.

"Hai?" She looked over at me, her hands held in front of her. It sorta reminded me as if she were praying. She had a smile on her face as she looked at me, however. I shook my head.

"Nothing, nothing." I smiled back. "I hope you enjoy living with me." She blushed brightly and I laughed at her embarrassment. We walked in silence for a while, thought the silence was abruptly broken.

"Kaeru-kun!" Kenkin's voice met my ears. "Cinnamon rolls!" I looked over and the girl beside me was bouncing on the balls of her feet, pointing giddily like a child towards a nearby bakery. I nodded as we headed towards the small shop. Maybe… Maybe I could love this girl…

The day went quickly and we managed to sneak out most of Kenkin's belongings from the Hyuuga Estate. While they did have the _Byakugan_ , it was common etiquette to leave it off when not on duty, so sneaking around was pretty easy. The next day, however, spoke of ill omens…

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure no Sato, Uchiha Estate, January 4** **th** **, 1 Year Before Kyuubi)**

The sound of puking filled my home. At first I thought it was my dad, but he was never up this early. I glanced out the window, seeing the sun just over the horizon. No, it was feminine. And coming from my bathroom. I glanced up at my bed, which Kenkin would be staying in. It was empty. I sighed and got up, seeing the light on in my bathroom. The sound of vomiting continued. I slowly opened the door and saw my recent houseguest puking into the sink, a slip of paper on the sink.

"Kenkin-chan?" I spoke softly and the girl jerked her head up. Her eyes wide with fear and filled with tears. "Kenkin-chan, what's-" I paused as I looked at the slip of paper. No. No, no, no! It couldn't be! That wasn't possible! 'Result: Positive'.

She couldn't be! Hinata wasn't born until after Naruto! Her birthday was still a good twenty-two months away! I froze. No. The only other brother she had was… No… No… Fuck… NO!

"I-I'm sorry Kaeru-kun…" she wept. "I… I-I'm… P-P-" I rested my hand on her shoulder as she looked up at me with tear filled eyes.

"What do you plan on doing?" I gave her a soft look. I was looking… at Neji's mother… Instead of answering, the young Hyuuga wept into my shoulder. I could feel my brain pounding away in my head. She was Neji's mother. His aunt as well. I knew the Hyuuga were not opposed to incest but to actually experience it… Sure, I'd witnessed the pains of rape in my former life. I hate to admit it didn't affect me all that much anymore. I would offer my condolences, tend to the victim as well as I could, and promise to remain by their side as long as they wanted me to; which usually didn't last very long. But a case like this… was completely alien to me. This was… in essence my best friend. A girl who, from what I could tell, had a minor crush on me. A girl who believed in me… And I'd let this happen to her… "Kenkin-chan…" I whispered. "Do you want to keep the child…?" I realized my mistake as soon as I'd made it. The poor girl wept even harder. Dammit Kaeru, of course she wouldn't know.

"Y-Yes…" she mumbled between sobs. "T-Three m-m-months…" I silently cursed to myself. Of course… Neji had been born sometime midway this year… She would have had to be pregnant before last year ended… Of course she'd know by now… "Y-You don't ha-ate me…?"

"I could never hate you…" I sighed, caressing her hair. I looked down on her. Her tear-filled, pearl orbs looked back into mine. I felt something tug at my heart… Like… as if I'd seen something like this before… Or something similar. But where? I opened my mouth to speak again as if on instinct. "I will never abandon you, even if the rest of the world does. I promise, and I never break a promise." I ignored the stronger tugging at my chest and led her back to my bedroom. As I sat on my futon, Kenkin did something to surprise me. Instead of getting in bed she sat on my lap and hugged me. Neither of us spoke a word. If it weren't for the recent news, I'd have thought it romantic. It took me a moment to realize that she was muttering "I'm sorry" over and over again under her breath. I felt like an old man again, comforting my grandchi- I blinked again, my eyes narrowing. I thought… something had resurfaced. I'd long forgotten most of my old life, but I knew well enough I'd never had a family. I ignored the feeling, filing it in the back of my mind for later, and closed my eyes and held the weeping girl. I realized how hard it must have been to keep this secret. From her family. Her friends. From… the rest of us. All of her pent up emotions… were suddenly being released like a dam.

 _Sing to her_ , suddenly popped up in my head. I blinked again, looking around for my parents. Nobody. But that feeling… Those words… _Sing idiot! It always works!_ I frowned and tried to make sense of those words. I couldn't possibly be going crazy. Not this early in my life. _Just do what I say dumbass!_ I sighed softly and decided to file away mysterious words in my head for later as well. I had something more important to take care of. Instead, I started whistling out a tune I'd loved from my past life. Something I'd written out in this one simply so I'd never forget it.

" _Short steps, deep breath  
Everything is alright  
Chin up, I can't  
Step into the spotlight  
She said, "I'm sad,"  
Somehow without any words  
I just stood there  
Searching for an answer_

 _When this world is no more  
The moon is all we'll see  
I'll ask you to fly away with me  
Until the stars all fall down  
They empty from the sky  
But I don't mind  
If you're with me, then everything's alright_

 _Why do my words  
Always lose their meaning?  
What I feel, what I say  
There's such a rift between them  
He said, "I can't  
Really seem to read you."  
I just stood there  
Never know what I should do_

 _When this world is no more  
The moon is all we'll see  
I'll ask you to fly away with me  
Until the stars all fall down  
They empty from the sky  
But I don't mind  
If you're with me, then everything's alright  
If you're with me, then everything's alright…"_

I stopped, noticing that Kenkin had fallen asleep with a light smile on her face. I wiped away her dry tears and laid down, not bothering to move the girl from where she was. She needed the sleep. I lightly kissed her forehead and drifted off alongside her.

 **XXXXX**

 **(?)**

 _"Daddy!"_

 _"Love… I'm pregnant again…"_

 _"It's a beautiful boy!"_

 _"Da~ad, _-kun won't let go!"_

 _"I'm worried about our kids, dear…"_

 _"Dad, I can totally kick your ass now!"_

 _"You need to talk to them."_

 _"How'd you beat me again?"_

 _"They're too close for siblings…"_

 _"Dad… I…"_

 _"Daddy, I'm…"_

 _"I'm in love with my little brother/big sister."_

 _"Honey you have to do something!"_

 _"What do you expect me to do _!? I can't decide who they love!"_

 _"It isn't love! It's disgusting! You are their father so_ do _something!"_

 _"We are gathered this day-"_

 _"I won't separate a genuine love!"_

 _"-to bring together an unlikely pair-"_

 _"Then they aren't welcome in this household!"_

 _"-in holy matrimony."_

 _"I will support them. I won't allow them to suffer."_

 _"You'd choose your brats over your own wife!?"_

 _"_... We do what we must…"_

 _"…Because no one else will…"_

 _"I love you…"_

 _"…I love you too…"_

 **XXXXX**

 **(?)**

I 'awoke' in a white limbo. I sighed and blinked, trying to remember anything more of that bizarre dream. "What a cliché place for a first meeting, isn't it?" I blinked at the somewhat familiar voice and looked around, finding nobody. "It's about time, too. I was starting to get bored." Suddenly someone materialized right in front of me, forcing me to scoot back. "And after seeing your life, boring seems to sum it up pretty well." I looked up and groaned. In front of me stood an older man with soft, rounded features. He had a black, albeit graying goatee and the same color hair tied back in a rattail. His eyes were sharp and calculating, but held a certain gentle amusement one would find from a hardened grandparent. And he wore the most irritating smirk I'd ever seen in my life. It was one that suggested that he was better than you, and knew it as well. He wore what could only be described as 'fancy' clothes. Tattered beige leather coat? Check. Long, faded jeans? Check. Expensive looking brown leather shoes? Oh, very expensive looking. He looked like a massive prick.

"Who the fuck are you?" I growled, standing up and dusting myself off. "Where the hell are we, actually?"

"Well as to where we are, I'd say we're in your head," he chuckled. "Quite an empty spot to, Mr. Nara." He gave me a patronizing grin. "If I had to say, you're extraordinarily empty-headed."

"Are you gonna keep insulting me or do I have to beat the shit out of you?" I threatened. Something about this guy was pissing me off, and I couldn't place my finger on it. The man frowned slightly at my response.

"Ah, you've gotten quite a short temper now. As you are, I have no doubt that you could whip my ass into three or four parts, but soon enough that won't be possible. You're quite the interesting one Mr. _. Oops! It's Uchiha now, isn't it? Ah, but I've taken enough of your time. That young lass in your arms is starting to stir. I'd get a move on if I were you. We wouldn't want anyone to worry about your well-being after all. Ja ne." And with that, the asshole seemed to dematerialize, along with the white limbo-ish world.

 **(Konohagakure no Sato, Konoha General Hospital, July 3rd, 1 Year Before Kyuubi)**

To say I was stressed would be putting it lightly. I was terrified. As I remained pacing out in the hallway I could hear Kenkin's cries of pain. She'd been in there for about ten hours. With every shout I twitched. With every scream I bit down on my lip and drew blood. I may have gotten my second tomoe from simply getting worked up but it meant nothing to me if Kenkin didn't survive. Nothing meant anything if she didn't survive.

I hadn't even heard from the weird asshole from six months ago, so there was me thinking I was going crazy. Anko hadn't been much help either. Her teasing only proved to make things worse. Orochimaru-sensei was making things even worse, leering at Kenkin as if she were some gift-wrapped test subject. It'd taken all my power just to make him back off. My parents were even worse, believing that I had been the one to impregnate Kenkin at first! It was all sorted out later on, but dad had been especially harsh during training.

I shut my eyes as I heard the Hyuuga girl scream in pain. I hardly noticed the hand come down and rest on my shoulder.

"It'll be alright, Kaeru-kun," a relaxed voice reached my ears. I sighed, looking up at the blond Jounin. "Trust me, she'll be out soon enough." I nodded slowly, taking deep breaths.

"I really don't see why we have to be here, sensei," the ever calming voice of the masked chunin offered his almighty comfort. "Neither of them are even our teammates. What happens to them doesn't matter to us."

"Kakashi-kun…" Rin…

"Oi! Shut your fat mouth before I break it teme!" and of course, Obito. Never did I ever expect to meet the full Team Minato in all their glory. "What's going on is amazing! I hope I get to have kids someday!" As Obito started to laugh obnoxiously, Kakashi drove his hand into the Uchiha's skull.

"Shut it, dobe! This is meaningless!"

"Maa, maa, boys. Obito-kun, now isn't the time to be getting worked up." Minato chided, causing the young Uchiha to sulk. "And Kakashi-kun, today is an exciting day for our fellow Leaf comrade. We should be happy for him." The silver haired nin scoffed and turned away. I winced at Minato's words though. Kenkin and I had decided to disguise her child as ours. It would cause less of an uproar among our friends, and Hizashi would most likely back off knowing she 'belonged' to me. While he had most certainly backed away, I would notice him glaring at me from afar if he caught sight of me.

"I'm having another cousin," a young Itachi spoke up. I smiled down at him and rubbed his forehead.

"Yes… You are. I hope you treat him well, otouto." He nodded in response.

"Ah, well I suppose we should leave, Kaeru-kun," Minato spoke up, stretching. "We have a mission tomorrow after all."

"Oh, where to this time?" I gave them a suspicious glance. Ever since the Third War had started, I'd been inquiring on every mission they went on.

"The Kannabi Bridge," Obito grinned excitedly as he spoke. "We finally get a worthwhile mission!" I nodded, smiling slightly. I knew what I had to do.

"Say, you don't mind if I tag along, do you?" Minato gave me a wary glance.

"Shouldn't you be staying here with Kenkin-chan and your child?"

"I need to support them somehow."

"You can do that well enough after you've settled down."

"I want the head start."

"You might not make it."

"I don't plan on dying."

"Nobody does."

"My plans always work."

"Always is quite a-"

"Just let me go, Minato-san." I glared at him, my _Sharingan_ blazing. I had to get on that mission! The blonde man sighed.

"I can't let you go, and that's final," he said and started to walk out. "Come along, team. We have a long day tomorrow." I growled, my fists clenched. I had to go on that mission. The future depended on it.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Omake: Kenkin's Diary, Part 2)**

Dear Diary,

I had a horrible dream! I dreamt of a man covered in shadows destroying Konoha! He was up in the sky and suddenly a huge crater was made where the village once was! It was terrifying, and I couldn't do anything to stop the destruction! There was slaughter everywhere! I was so scared… But then a man that looked like Minato-sensei appeared and beat back the other man! But what really scared me was the end… When everything was finished… I saw that the shadowy man had Kaeru-kun's face… When I woke up I was sleeping with Kaeru-kun though, so I felt much better. Oh please Kami, don't let this dream be real!

 **XXXXX**

 _ **A/N: A little bit of light foreshadowing and that's a wrap! I'm surprised how popular this story became! As promised I'll be putting this one on hold for a while and working on some of the others. I've been getting massive bouts of writer's block though, and work and school aren't helping. Don't mind the timeskips, I'll fill them in eventually. If I remember them. Ah, well, this is mostly Prologue anyway. The real story starts in a few more chapters. And trust me, I got a twist to knock your socks off! Well, two of them. I can't decide which I like more though… Hm… If I had a beta this would be much easier. Aha! If you'd like to beta my stories, it'd be much appreciated! Please apply via PM! Ja ne!**_


	3. Prologue Part 3

**Kaeru-baka doesn't own Naruto, and this is the first promise he's ever broken.**

 _ **A/N: I know I said I'd do some other stories but to be honest, I'm having too much fun with this one at the moment! Anyways, thanks to all of my followers that I've beeb bothered to list so far: DarkDust27, DocBrown13, Gashadokuro Amanojaku, MaidMaliya, Morrigan's lover, Shadowarrior13, Squadpunk 2.0, Wonkie, WordsAreFun, Yeltin, campiongirl16, chi4ngo, fanfiction2010, grifman275, harrypotter9398, lilyoftheval5, mishuu, moonlight, oddject, saayeen006, setsunaxx, sgolek1, , waraa.**_

 **XXXXX**

 **Prologue Pt. 3**

 **XXXXX**

It all had started so well. I had snuck out of the village right behind Team Minato early in the morning, using a knockoff of Shisui's _Shunshin_ (Body Flicker) mastery. While I couldn't use it as frequently as the young boy, I still managed to remain unseen for the most part. I thanked whatever deity was out there that Obito didn't have his _Sharingan_ , or he might have caught me. I grimaced as I watched Minato take off towards the front. The moment of reckoning was near. I closed my eyes and followed them, doing nothing while Rin was taken. I watched as Obito stormed off and put himself at risk, and Kakashi followed soon after to rescue the Uchiha. That was when I struck. While Obito and Kakashi took care of things outside, I snuck into the cave the Iwa nin had set up shop and confronted them. I took a deep breath, drawing their attention.

"Wha- who the hell is this brat!?" Ugly Number One of three shouted. I stared them down, my _Sharingan_ blazing with two tomoe. My first real battle experience was about to begin.

"Dammit, I thought there was only two of them!" Ugly Number Three growled, already flashing through handsigns. " _Doton:_ _Wareme Torappu_ (Earth Release: Fissure Trap)!" He slammed his hands into the ground, the earth suddenly descending into spikes, the effect rushing towards me.

"Just kill the little brat!" Screamed sorta cute girl but still Ugly Number Two, " _Doton: Hashira Sumasshu_ (Earth Release: Pillar Smash)!" I lept to the side as a huge pillar fell from the ceiling, crushing the ground right where I had been standing. I cursed inwardly as the depressed chasm from the first ninja was making progress in my direction. I was outnumbered, and I had to finish it fast. I grunted as a huge wall of stone slammed into my side. "Gotcha you little runt!" I flashed through a familiar set of handseals and inhaled.

" _Katon: Nagare Hono_ (Fire Release: Flame Stream)!" I blew out as hard as I could, ejecting chakra from my mouth in a tight, hot stream towards Ugly Number One. He easily sidestepped my stream, but I was already rushing towards him, my most recent work in my left hand. An orange ball of crackling mix of fire and electricity. It may not have the grinding rotating power of Minato's _Rasengan_ , but it was definitely going to fry.

" _Kiragan_ (Spark Sphere)!" I cried, dashing to the side of the man and driving the sparking attack straight into his stomach. I heard him scream, and my entire left side lit up in an orange glow as sparks raced through his body, his clothes lighting on fire and his skin smelling quite… cooked. I closed my eyes to block out the vision of his fried corpse. It wasn't something I wanted my eyes to memorize. It was a grave mistake.

 _WHAM!_ I felt something slam into my head, my eyes flying open to see what hit me. It was a huge boulder, probably flung by Ugly Number Two. "You little prick!" I groaned, too dazed to do much more than fall to the ground as the two remaining Iwa nin descended on me. I could hear the birds flying away from the battle.

" _Chidori_ (One Thousand Birds)!" I mindlessly gazed upon my attackers. One burning, the other with an electrified hand piercing her heart.

"K-Kakashi-san…" I murmured. He looked at me with a critical gaze, while Obito just looked worried with a touch of disappointment.

"You shouldn't be here," Kakashi sighed, helping me to my feet as Obito ran towards the now waking Rin. "You've put this mission and yourself in danger! What the hell are you doing here, anyway?"

"Wanted to help…" I groaned, regaining my bearings. It took me a second to stand on my own. "Look, we've gotta get outta here!" Obito came over with an uneasy Rin. Kakashi looked us over.

"Let's go. We need to get Kaeru-baka here back to Konoha," he said. The earth rumbled. "Shit… it was booby-trapped!?" Was it…? No… I thought Iwa nin were…

"We have to go!" Obito was already running for the exit with Rin. Kakashi grabbed me and we followed suit. What happened next was in slow motion. I watched as the boulder fell towards Obito and Rin. On instinct, I knew I couldn't let them die here. I couldn't let Obito get trapped. So I sprinted past Kakashi and shoved Obito and Rin out of the way.

To say getting crushed was painful would be an understatement. I was in agony. Unlike Obito, the boulder hadn't just landed on my side. My entire torso was crushed, leaving my head to be left out in the open. I screamed loudly.

"Get out!" I screamed in my pain towards Team Minato. "Get out of here!" I saw Obito and Rin try to argue but Kakashi finally relented and dragged them away, minus an eye. I continued to scream, even as I felt myself passing out.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Hell Knows Where, Hell Knows When)**

I hadn't expected to wake up. Or to be wrapped in bandages. Or for there to be a wrinkly old man staring down at me. Or for that wrinkly old man to be Uchiha Madara. I blinked. He blinked back. Or at least I think he did. He might've died there for a moment, actually.

"So the little runt made it," he rasped. "Good. Then my efforts won't have been wasted." I groaned internally. Fuck you Obito, why couldn't you have been squashed instead of me?

 **XXXXX**

 **(Hell Knows Where, A Few Months Later)**

I inwardly smirked as I left the cave. Good riddance, it smelled like prunes and shit. Damn old man didn't know the meaning of bath. Madara had played right into my hands, training me to be his ultimate gambit as I leeched off of him to become stronger, get my third tomoe, and become more tolerant to pain. I still wanted to avoid it though. As I made my way onto the main road, I flexed my now defined muscles. As pasty white my body was, all wrapped in bandages nonetheless, I felt great! Stronger than I'd ever been! I took a bit of contemplative thought to my old body, the crushed heap of mess it was, but I didn't regret a thing. It took me seven days to get to Konohagakure, and boy was that an eventful welcome. To say people were relieved and pissed would be an understatement. I got a mouthful from my parents and Anko. But my welcome was broken by sad news. Kenkin had survived the birth, but had committed suicide as soon as I was declared KIA. She'd left a note revealing Hizashi as the father, who was promptly charged with rape of a minor and put under probation to raise the baby boy, Neji. Life became training for me. My eyes underwent transformation into the _Mangekyou Sharingan_ as I tortured myself knowing I'd caused her death. And with the transformation, came a plan. A plan to make life very interesting in the future. The man I met in my dreams years ago tried to talk me out of it, but I would not be deterred.

 **XXXXX**

 **(An Undisclosed Location, October 10** **th** **)**

Inwardly, I was sick of myself as I held baby Naruto, a kunai to his throat and a mask over my face of a fox. But I had to harden my heart as I drew out Kurama from Kushina. I tossed Naruto into the air and fled as soon as the _Kyuubi_ was released, ensnaring the beast with my eyes, taking control of him. I allowed myself to grin at the sheer power I felt. It was intoxicating. The fear. The rage. The hatred. I rode the _Kyuubi_ into Konohagakure. And I let it loose. Unlike Obito, I stayed with the nine-tails. Its job would be done, regardless. I watched as Minato and Kushina sacrificed themselves to save their child and seal half of Kurama into their child. And when they finished, I removed my mask and broke it, moving towards the blonde child. My former life vanished in its traces. I was Uchiha Kaeru, and no one else. The man from all those years ago I'd met in my dream never returned.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, South Gate, One Year After Kyuubi)**

"I'm not staying, Kaeru-kun," she frowned, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "I'm sticking with Orochimaru-sensei." I sighed tiredly as Anko argued with me, holding a sleeping Naruto in my arm. "Why aren't you coming with us?"

"Because I belong here, taking care of Naruto-chan," I replied, taking a deep breath. It was only a partial lie. "You're good with kids, why don't you stay and help?"

"I keep telling you, I'm staying with our sensei and I'm not leaving his side."

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Uchiha Clan Compound, Six Years After Kyuubi)**

"Why… why can't I defeat you, sensei…?" a tired and distraught Itachi panted out. I glanced at the shadow clone I'd made who was killing the civilian members of my former clan. "I'm a prodigy… I've even killed my own father… How could you be stronger than him…?" I blinked at the young boy, revealing my _Mangekyou Sharingan_ to the world for the first time in six years. He gasped, staring at my enhanced eyes with his own.

"My eyes are stronger than yours, boy," I chided him. "I would have let you go without harm, but to kill my mother…" I growled. "I will have to discipline you… _Ganesha_ (Lord of the Multitudes)." I watched as the corpses around us slowly rose, my will being forced into their lifeless bodies. "Discipline my former student." I turned and walked away as the corpses began attacking Itachi, who seemed stunned at what had just happened. I made my way to my former abode, my mother's body laying lifeless on the ground, my father lying beside her, his head missing. I reached towards her head and plucked her eyes out, dropped them, and promptly fell to my hands and knees and threw up what was left of my lunch. I grasped the eye in my hand and weakly reached up for my own. And plucked my left eye out.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUGH!" I screamed in pain, quickly replacing my missing eye with my mother's. I started to hyperventilate from the pain and crushed my former eye, falling flat on my face onto the ground. I promptly passed out.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, The Twisted Kunai, Seven Years After Kyuubi)**

My nineteenth birthday… It was not one I wanted to celebrate… Hell, I didn't feel like celebrating at all. My parents were dead… My team either dead or broken… My friends… long gone after I'd started separating myself from them… I was alone in this shithole of a bar. I took another swig of my especially strong _sake_ to try and cheer myself up. Fuck… Maybe another drink…

"You've looked better," a smartass decided to sit next to me. I glanced over at the unwelcome intruder and grunted. "And you used to be such a charmer, too."

"Piss off, Anko-chan, I'm not in the mood," I retorted, earning a laugh from the purple-haired young woman. She ordered herself the same drink I had.

"Psh, if you weren't in the mood you wouldn't have added –chan to my name, _baka_ ," she replied, slapping my back. "By the way, like my new look? I tried super hard on it." I chuckled. So this was when Anko decided to start her whole fishnet and trenchcoat look. She _was_ naked under that thing, I noticed. "See? A laugh! Fuck yeah, I'm good!" I couldn't help but give her a light smile and rolled my eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, you cheered up a depressed _Chunin_ , not bad. Not like you haven't done that before." The woman frowned at me.

"Here I come trying to cheer up and old teammate and he calls me a whore," she grumbled, giving me an angry look. "I might take it from a lot of people, but I _won't_ take that kind of shit from the prude."

"Just waiting for the right girl," I retorted.

"The right girl is _dead_ Kaeru," she sneered. "And we both know it. So grow a pair and find a new 'right girl' instead of throwing your life away on A-ranks!" She paused and took a gulp of her drink, "Besides… I'm not a whore… Don't you fucking call me a whore…"

"I never called you a thing," I rubbed her back, hoping to salvage a bit of our friendship. "I made you a promise, didn't I…?" She scoffed.

"As if you haven't broken your promises before," she mumbled. There was silence between us for a while. "Thanks, though… You know, for sticking up with me…"

"The least I could do for the only friend I have left…" She nodded her head absentmindedly.

"Hey… if it isn't too much to ask…" she hesitated, "do you wanna come back to my place and… have some dinner?" I gave it some thought and stood. She gave me a confused look until I offered her my hand.

"Are we gonna have some food, or what?" I asked her, prompting her to take my hand in hers. She gave me a shit-eating grin and nodded. "Then let's go. I'm starving!"

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Hokage's Office, Ten Years After Kyuubi)**

"With all due respect Hokage-dono," I spoke up. "I believe Hatake-san is unfit to be a _Jounin-sensei_." The gray-haired man gave me a hard look as the old Hokage looked upon me with curious eyes.

"Oh-ho? And why do you say that, Kaeru-san?" he questioned.

"Yes, Uchiha-san, why do you say that?" Kakashi echoed.

"Hatake-san has spent quite a long period in ANBU," I elaborated. "To assign him as a _sensei_ so soon is not the wisest choice. I know that if I had a child, I wouldn't want a mildly unstable and, to be quite frank, unreliable former ANBU Captain to lead my children into the shinobi world."

"Unreliable?" Kakashi growled.

"Easy, Kakashi-san," Sarutobi warned. "Your words have been taken into consideration, Kaeru-san. Though would you say you could provide better service as a _Jounin-sensei_?" I smiled slightly at the notion.

"Yes sir, I would."

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Anko's Apartment, June 11** **th** **, 13 Years After Kyuubi)**

I woke up early in the morning, easily escaping the confines of my girlfriend's evil clutches and making my way to the bathroom. On the way I picked up a change of clothes, a long sleeved black shirt, long, grey cargo pants, and a pair of white underwear. The night before had been hectic. It turned out that jackass Mizuki had tried stealing the _Fuin no Sho_ (Scroll of Seals) via Naruto. Of course everything was sorted out, but all _Jounin_ and a few _Chunin_ were scrambled to retrieve the precious artifact. While I didn't try very hard, I got to see the tail end of Naruto showing off his brand new jutsu. I smiled as I turned on the hot water and stared at my reflection. I was twenty-five… Man, that made me feel young… My face was angled not unlike my father's, but unlike his boney face, min had a bit of chub from my mother. My raven hair fell down both sides of my face, framing it, with a rat-tail that ran down my back. The top of my hair was pretty flat and well kept too. I supposed I looked like Itachi plus my rat-tail. My eyes were the ever dark grey, and my skin the healthy olive my father had.

As I took off my pajamas I had to admire how sculpted I was. No, I didn't have a six-pack or bulging muscles, but I was definitely toned. I frowned, though, noticing only my head and the midway point of my neck was olive, while the rest of me was a pale white. Hashirama's cells were a magnificent thing, but I hated how marred I looked. I sighed and shook my head. At least I was good and healthy, according to Anko. I chuckled at the thought and took my shower. A few minutes later I was all washed and hygenicized. I exited the bathroom and stared at my girlfriend, crossing my arms in silent amusement. During my shower Anko had hogged all of the covers, her hair a mess and drool falling from her mouth. I quietly and exited our room and made myself a breakfast of cereal, milk, and some toast with jam. I packed myself a small bagged lunch after cleaning my dishes, left a note telling Anko where I was going, and went off to Training Ground 44. Today was the day I would finally meet Team Seven in its entirety.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Academy Classroom A-108, June 11** **th** **, 13 Years After Kyuubi)**

 **(A/N: Because of what I have planned, I'll now be following Naruto's adventure)**

"What are you doing?" asked the pink haired girl at the desk. It was almost an hour after their _sensei_ was supposed to show up and Naruto was getting impatient! He grinned and laughed to himself as he placed the chalk precariously above the door.

"Chill out, Sakura-chan, this'll be totally awesome!" he assured her. Sakura seemed to growl at his prank.

 _Dammit, Naruto is gonna ruin everything with his stupid prank!_ Sakura thought to herself. _**But damn won't it be awesome to see the look on that**_ **baka's** _ **face if he falls for this,**_ **shannaro** _ **!**_ Sitting beside Sakura, a dark haired boy rolled his eyes and looked away.

"No self-respecting _Jounin_ is gonna fall for that, _dobe_ ," he grumbled, earning a raspberry from his classmate. "Honestly, you're such a child."

"Sasuke-kun is right, Naruto!" Sakura piped up. "How could you even be so stupid to consider such a childish prank?" Right as the words left her mouth, the door opened. Time seemed to stop as the chalk fell… and landed right on the head of the man who entered. _**Shannaro, he's so hot! And Naruto-baka just pranked him!**_

 _So it's him…_ thought Sasuke. Naruto wasn't really thinking anything, instead laughing madly. A few moments later the blonde in the orange jumpsuit calmed down enough for the room to be silent again. Four pairs of eyes stared off at one another. Sweat began to bead up on Sakura and Naruto's brows at the impassive stare they were getting from the long haired man. Then, with a low, slow tone, the man spoke.

"That was a shitty prank," he said, the rest of the room's occupants facefaulting. "Alright, we're late enough as it is. Come and meet me up on the roof. Rush now, kids." With that, the man seemed to vanish in a swirl of leaves. The kids all looked at one another and shrugged, walking up to the school's quite nice rooftop where the man was waiting for them. He ushered them to sit along the steps near the edge of the building, he himself leaning against the railing. "Now then, since we're all here, I'd like for you kids to introduce yourself." Sakura promptly raised her hand.

"Um, _sensei_ , how should we do that?" she asked. The man audibly sighed, pressing his index and middle fingers against his forehead. _What a jerk!_

"Names… likes… dislikes… dreams for the future, I guess" he replied. "Here, I'll go first. My name is Uchiha Kaeru. I like… ramen, my girlfriend, and dango. I dislike… well, a lot of things. My dreams for the future…?" He paused, the three students unconsciously leaning forward in interest. "Well, I haven't really thought of that." The three students groaned. The man, Kaeru, pointed to Sakura. "Now then, why don't we go with pinky here?" The girl growled and cleared her throat.

"My name is Haruno Sakura. I like…" she giggled and glanced at Sasuke. "My dreams for the future…" she squealed girlishly and squirmed excitedly.

"And dislikes?"

"Naruto!" the blonde boy visibly depressed. Kaeru nodded slightly.

"I see, I see," he said. "Well, since his name came up quite passionately, I'd say you should go next." Naruto grinned and leapt up to his feet.

"My name is Uzumaki Naruto! I love instant ramen, Ichiraku Ramen, Teuchi-jiji, Hokage-jiji, Ayame-nee, and Chichi-chan!" Kaeru seemed to snort at that. "I hate the three minutes it takes for instant ramen to warm up, and I dream to be the greatest Hokage, 'dattebayo!"

"Good, good," Kaeru applauded slightly. "Lastly, you, little cousin." Sasuke grunted.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I don't like anything. I hate a lot of things. And my dream… no, my _ambition_ is to ki- _itai_!" right as he was about to finish, Kaeru walked over to him and slammed his fist down into Sasuke's skull.

"No!" he chided, "down Sasuke! Bad Sasuke. No obsessing over revenge, remember?" While Sasuke seemed angry for a second, he quickly became impassive again.

"Hai, nii-chan…" he sighed. "My dream is to repopulate the Uchiha Clan someday and bring my brother to justice…"

"See? Was that so hard?" All Kaeru got in response were grumbles. "Alright, so let's get something straight… You aren't actually _genin_ yet."

 _ **"WHAT!?"**_

 **XXXXX**

 **Omake: Anko's Diary**

Hey Diary,

Guess I'm your new owner now, huh? I mean, it was in her will and stuff after all. You know, your previous owner's. Dayum, she was obsessed over Kaeru… I mean, I think ninety percent of the crap that's in here is about him… Poor girl, she never got to get with the guy… And he's dead too. Well, I hope they meet up wherever they go. It's probably something I should say as their teammate, huh? I guess I should keep Kenkin-chan's dream alive or something. Make people happy and stuff. Or maybe I should leave well enough alone. Ugh, sucks Kaeru died… He was kinda cute too…

 **XXXXX**

 _ **A/N: I know, I know! I'm sorry! I just wanted to get to the actual story, and this prologue was going on forever! I'll probably fill in the events whenever I feel like it so… yeah, deal with it. And yes, I used a Hindu deity for a Mangekyou power.**_


	4. Chapter One, The Start of Legends

**Kaeru-sensei doesn't own Naruto, and he's a crappy sensei as well!**

 _ **A/N: Nope. I'm actually gonna finish this one. I swear to God I'm gonna finish it or die trying.**_

 **XXXXX**

 **Chapter One: The Start of Legends**

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Atop the Shinobi Academy, June 11** **th** **, 13 Years After Kyuubi)**

" _ **WHAT!"**_ the three stunned _genin_ cried out. While Sakura and Naruto both wore expressions of shock, Sasuke inwardly seethed. _Dammit!_ He thought, his face contorting into rage, _I thought he was lying about that!_

"Well," Kaeru chuckled, rubbing the back of his head, "you see, after your academy years, there's another, secondary test run by your _Jounin-sensei_. In your case, me. The first test is to test your capabilities into becoming shinobi. This test is to ensure you have the skills I deem necessary to become full-fledged ninja."

"So it's like a secondary exam?" Sakura asked curiously. Kaeru smiled and nodded.

"Yep, and your examiner is me," he replied. "Now, why don't you kids go get some lunch, and meet me at Training Ground Seven in two hours?" He disappeared once more in a swirl of leaves, leaving the three children to their own devices. They sat for a few seconds in silence.

"Hey Sakura-chan, wanna go get some ramen with me?" Naruto asked loudly, hopping to his feet. The pink haired girl scoffed and rolled her eyes, turning away from him with her arms crossed.

"As If I'd ever want to be caught dead with _you_!" she scoffed. Immediately, she turned to Sasuke. You could see the hearts in her eyes. "So, Sasuke-kun, do you want to get something to-" She stopped talking as soon as she'd realized the black haired boy was walking away from her. "O-Ok! I'll see you then, Sasuke-kun!" She gave his back a wide smile before turning away and going back to the ground level. As she walked through town, she paid a lot of attention to the ninja leaping from roof to roof overhead. Though most would actually walk along the streets alongside civilians, those in a rush or on duty would usually take the rooftop route. More often than not they were headed to the Hokage Estate. While _genin_ teams usually got their missions from someone on the bottom floor, teams of _Chunin_ rank or above would report directly to the Hokage.

Taking a moment to ignore said travelling ninja, Sakura took in her surroundings. She was currently walking down the main street from the South Gate, the Hokage Monument standing directly overhead, and the Hokage Estate just in front of it. There were quite a few civilians mulling about around her, a few of which would give her short, polite waves that she would return. There were a few ninja around her, most of them in the _Jounin_ and _Chunin_ category, though she could tell apart a few _genin_ by their youth and their lack of a flak jacket. Looking around at the stores she couldn't really find anything worth her interest. Until she saw _her_. A woman around her mid-twenties eating at a dango shop, feet up on the table, and a trenchcoat over a fishnet shirt. While she wore extremely short jeans shorts and a pair of sandals, she had nothing else on. Sakura became filled with righteous feminine fury.

"What the hell are you wearing!?" she yelled, storming towards the indecent woman. The purple haired diner paid no attention to the pink haired girl. **Shannaro** _ **! Don't you ignore me!**_ "Hey! Put some clothes on you- you insult to women!" That got the trenchcoat wearing woman's attention. Sakura suddenly felt fear as the woman's hard gaze rested on her. She could feel the woman looking her over critically. Instead of getting angry though, the stranger snorted.

"Psh, as if a gaki like you could talk to a super sexy woman like me about being insulting," she snarked. "Look at you, you don't even have the looks of a woman! You're just a really feminine looking guy!" Sakura seethed. "Oh don't pretend like I'm not right. Your chest is flatter than this table." To emphasize her point, the woman kicked said table in front of her.

"Why you…!"

"Oi, oi, Anko-chan," a familiar voice called out behind Sakura. Anger slightly forgotten, the young girl turned around to see her sensei approaching with a few other people. The first one beside him was definitely a Hyuuga by the look of his eyes. He had a hard look on his face, but it seemed like it was plastered there more than him actually trying to look mean. The second one was a woman probably around her forties. She had deep brown hair and a certain regal feel to her. Sakura recognized the woman as Ino's mother. "You're not hassling my cute little student-wannabe, now, are you?" Anko scoffed and rolled her eyes as the newcomers sat around her. Sakura slowly backed away, deciding that this was a good time to leave.

"Please, Anko-chan would rather corrupt the girl to follow her own ways, wouldn't you?" the woman teased. "Kami help us the day she actually takes up an apprentice. Or worse, the day you two have children!"

"Ehhh!? I'm not that bad!" Kaeru played along, earning a punch in the arm from his girlfriend.

"And I am? How insulting is that?" she joked. A young waitress soon came to the table and took the orders of the three newcomers. "Oi, Hizashi-san. How's the gaki?"

" _Un_ (Yeah)," Kaeru nodded, "I haven't seen him in a while. How's little Neji-kun?" The Hyuuga sighed and crossed his arms, a proud smile on his face.

"Neji-kun is doing well in his _Jyuuken_ (Gentle Step). He's living up to his title as a prodigy," Hizashi replied with a deep, strong voice. "Though he has a very… revolutionary view of the system between the Main and Branch families. He's already gotten into trouble with otou-san because of his views." Anko waved her hand dismissively.

"Psh, like the gaki'll let that keep him down," she dismissed. "Isn't he getting a following?"

"Hai," Hizashi replied. "And one of his followers seems to be my brother and sister's daughter. I've seen them working in secret to reform the clan system." He chuckled. "I'm sure they'll figure something out. Maybe not while my otou-san is alive, but someday in the future." He then looked to Kaeru. "You know, Neji-kun has been waiting for another visit from Kaeru-ojisan."

"Ah, well I've been busy, you know," Kaeru excused himself. Hizashi rolled his eyes.

"Yes, any Inuzuka would be able to smell it," he joked, making Kaeru flush and Anko grin wickedly.

"Just because you haven't gotten any in a few years doesn't mean you can be jealous," Anko teased, though everyone could hear the bite behind her words. The table became silent.

"So my little Ino-chan has finally become a shinobi!" the woman sitting with them switched the mood quickly. "I'm so proud!" Anko and Kaeru both gave each other a knowing look.

"Well…"

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Training Ground Seven, June 11** **th** **)**

Sasuke waited patiently, resting against the left-most wooden pole on the training ground. He had his eyes shut and his arms crossed as he relaxed outwardly. Inwardly, though, he was both outraged and excited. _I can't wait to be a shinobi!_ He thought to himself. _I'll finally avenge the Uchiha and repopulate it!_ _Kaeru-niichan better not hold anything back, even for those two! I won't let myself be slowed down by them!_ He was interrupted from his thoughts when he heard a throat being cleared. He opened his eyes to see his cousin looking down on him. The man raised his right hand in greeting.

"Yo," he spoke. Sasuke simply nodded his head in greeting. "Why aren't you with your friends, Sasuke-kun?" he asked. The youngest Uchiha rolled his eyes.

"I don't have any friends," he replied. That made Kaeru laugh, earning himself a dirty look. "I don't!"

"Bah, those two other kids are pretty nice," Kaeru pointed out. "They'll be your teammates too, if you pass. You might want to get to know them."

"I don't need them," Sasuke retorted, "they'll only hold me back!" Though he didn't respond, Kaeru simply shook his head and sighed. It was only a few minutes later that Sakura appeared, and a few minutes later, Naruto showed up.

"Good, everyone's here," Kaeru clapped his hands together. "Well, I suppose we can begin our test now." His face slid into a smile that seemed way too happy to be anything but suspicious. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two, shiny bells. "What you three will be doing, is try to take these bells from me. Whomever gets a bell will become my student." Sakura raised her hand. "Gaki, we're ninja. Don't raise your hand and just ask."

" _Sensei_ , there are only two bells though," Sakura pointed out. _He can't honestly think we'll all pass with just two bells and three of us, right?_

"Good observation, Sakura-chan," he nodded approvingly. "That's because only two of you will pass. The one who doesn't get a bell will be sent back to the academy."

 _ **"What!?"**_ Kaeru covered his ears at the resulting scream. Sakura protested first, "But Kaeru- _sensei_ , that isn't fair!"

"Ah, ah, I'm the examiner, children," Kaeru smirked and waved his finger. "That means I make the rules. If I want to only have two students pass, I'll only let two students pass. Now then." Taking a small alarm clock out of his flak jacket pouch and placing it on one of the wooden poles, he set the time. "You have one hour to get these bells from me. Until three. Unless you come at me with the intent to kill- Oi!" Kaeru quickly raised his arm to block an oncoming kick from Naruto, who quickly moved to kick him again. "Calm down, gaki, I haven't said to start yet. But good enthusiasm." He smiled and tossed the boy back to his friends. "Now then. _Hajime_ (Begin)!" Immediately, the three academy students leapt into the nearby tree line. Sakura was flat on her stomach under a bush, but her face was easy to see for the trained eye. Sasuke was hidden a bit better in the trees, but a trained eye could spot his shadow easily. Naruto…

"I don't have to hide! I can beat you up right here and now!" the blonde shouted, standing right across from Kaeru.

 _He can't honestly be_ this _stupid, can he?_ Kaeru wondered. Seeing the boy's determined face, Kaeru did his best not to facepalm. "You know, you don't seem to be as bright as the other two." Naruto pointed an accusing finger at Kaeru.

"Shut the hell up!" he growled, then hunched over, his hands in a cross handsign. " _ **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**_ **(Shadow Clone Technique)**!" Immediately, the field was filled with over forty blonde haired boys. Kaeru's left eye raised slightly.

 _Hm… Hearing about this is completely different than seeing it in person,_ he thought to himself as the multiple Narutos charged towards him en masse. _This shouldn't be too hard, but I'd rather not get hit. I suppose it's time to bring out what I trained with Shisui-kun._ Right before impact with the first clone, Kaeru vanished, effectively eliminating around twenty clones who hit each other in the confusion. Confused, the blondes looked around.

"Where did he go!?" one shouted.

"He just disappeared!"

"He can't just disappear, that's impossible!"

"Yeah, and it's broad daylight!"

"First lesson of Shinobi Arts: Taijutsu," a voice appeared from behind the original, who was in the back of the group of clones. They all turned around to see Kaeru standing there, his _**Sharingan**_ blazing with three tomoe. "Now then, prepare yourself." Quickly, Kaeru reached into his side kunai pouch.

"Urk!" The original flinched, doubling back a little. As quickly as his hand moved to his pocket, Kaeru brought out… "A book!? What the hell do you have a book for!?" Kaeru opened the book, removing a slip of paper and tucking it into his flak jacket pocket.

"To read, of course," he replied, his eyes glued to the pages. " _Icha Icha: Childhood Friends_. A good read." He smiled slightly.

"Pay attention to me, _teme_!" Naruto growled. With a mighty cry, all of the remaining Narutos charged at Kaeru. Kaeru made quick work of the clones, easily blocking their attacks with his remaining arm and striking back with his feet.

 _Not bad,_ he thought, _Kakashi-san would have trouble with the sheer numbers, though Gai-san would be having a blast. Speaking of, I suppose it's time to take a page from his book._ "YOUTH! HRRRRAAAAAGH!" Suddenly fired up, Kaeru lunged towards the clones, beating them down and popping them. He moved quickly, seemingly teleporting from one enemy to the next. His methods were brutal, from nut-shots to twisting and breaking the clones' necks. "Lesson Two, Genjutsu." Kaeru appeared directly in front of the real Naruto, who was stunned at the man's sudden appearance. He held his right arm in a single _Ram_ seal. " _ **Magen: Narakumi no Jutsu**_ **(Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique)**." Suddenly, Naruto froze in place, his eyes wide. "Hm… perhaps that was too harsh." Back in the treeline, Sasuke's eyes widened.

 _He's open! Now's my chance!_ He thought. Immediately, he pulled out six kunai from his leg pouch and threw them in a curve towards Kaeru.

 _Not bad Sasuke-kun. But you're too open._

The kunai struck, and Kaeru's body went flying forward, knocking into Naruto and stunning the boy out of the genjutsu. Or at least, a log was struck. _Shit! He knows where I am!_ Sasuke immediately moved from his location to find a new hiding spot.

 _ **Shannaro! He was so close!**_ Sakura thought to herself. _Sasuke-kun is so cool!_ She froze as she felt a finger tap her finger. Slowly, the pink haired girl turned around.

" _ **Houkou Nodarou**_ **(Will of Houkou)** ," was all she heard before she fell into darkness. Her final thoughts before the hour was up was, Sensei's _eyes look weird…_ Kaeru looked down on the pink haired girl, a bit disappointed.

 _She really is dead weight…_ he sighed, walking back out into the clearing. "Alright Sasuke-kun, it's just you and me." He stared right into the treeline, and he could hear Sasuke's breathing hitch. "Come out and face me, or you all fail." Immediately came the response. Sasuke lunged out of the treeline, making a beeline for the bell tied to Kaeru's waist. "Too slow." Kunai drawn, Sasuke lunged at Kaeru, aiming to slash him. Kaeru easily blocked the kunai with his own. "Lesson Three, N-"

" _ **Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu**_ **(Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique)**!" Sasuke called out, taking a deep breath and blowing out a huge fireball about half the size of the boy, which instantly launched itself point blank towards Kaeru. It engulfed Kaeru's figure and exploded once it hit the ground. _Fast!_ Sasuke immediately noted his cousin's presence behind him and spun, throwing four kunai at Kaeru's shadow. _Damn! He's playing with me!_

" _ **Taju Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**_ **(Multiple Shadow Clone Technique)**!" a cry rang out in the clearing, and both Sasuke and Kaeru stopped to watch hundreds upon hundreds of blonde boys pop into existence around them. "Charge!" With a mighty roar, the clones were upon them. Though they separated around Sasuke, pops could be heard with every clone that was beaten down by Kaeru.

"Not bad, _gaki_! _**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**_ **(Shadow Clone Technique)**!"1 a single clone popped up beside Kaeru.

"Wait-what!?" The Narutos cried in shock. They quickly regained their composure as more of them started popping. "Get him!""Raah!""Kick his ass!" Sasuke was now appearing every so often to strike at Kaeru, making moves between the hordes of blondes and retreating whenever his cousin was getting close to hitting him. Inside the mass, Kaeru smiled as he felt one of the bells break off of its string. Right as he felt another tug.

 _ **RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!**_ The bell rang, indicating that their time was up.

"Yahoo! I got a bell, 'ttebayo! I got one!" Naruto cheered. Kaeru snickered as both his clone, and the bell in Naruto's hand, popped in a plume of smoke. " _N-Nani_!?" He stared at his now empty hand in shock and sadness.

"Almost," Kaeru spoke up as a now shivering Sakura emerged from the forest. "Ah, here's our last member. Did you enjoy your dream, Sakura-chan?" The pink haired girl shuddered and whimpered a little. "Ah, perhaps I was a bit cruel with that one." He moved towards the girl and rested his hand on her forehead. "Tell me, are you feeling alright? No sudden apathy or something similar? Can you think straight?"

" _H-Hai sensei…_ " Sakura whimpered. "I feel fine…" It was obvious that she wasn't being completely truthful, though. Naruto shot her a worried glance while Sasuke scoffed and glared at Kaeru.

"Well then," Kaeru sighed, standing before the children. "I'm a bit disappointed in you three. None of you managed to get a bell." Sakura shot the man a glare, but he ignored it.

 _That jerk took me out before I could even try,_ she raged silently.

"Well, I suppose I can give you a second chance…" the children perked up at that. Kaeru wandered over to the nearby treeline and pulled out three cages, each one holding a single, young rabbit. He handed a cage to each child. "Take these home and bring them back tomorrow at noon. This time, all three of you pass, or you all fail. The second part of this half will be finished tomorrow, than then I'll decide." While Sakura gushed over the rabbit, Naruto and Sasuke both seemed confused. "Have fun kids. Remember, come back with your rabbit at noon or none of you stand a chance." With that, Kaeru made a _Ram_ seal and vanished in a swirl of leaves.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Anko's Appartment, June 11** **th** **, 11 PM)**

"Mmm, so how was your day, Kaeru-kun…?" drawled the violet haired woman, tracing the chalky white chest of her lover. "You scare those brats shitless?"

"Heh, that's your job, Anko-chan," Kaeru replied, an arm wrapped around the woman's shoulder. Said woman rolled her eyes and snorted. "Honestly! I mean, the only reason you haven't scared Naruto-kun is because you two are so alike!"

"Ohoho? And what's keeping me from scaring _you_ off, hm?" she teased in return.

"I dunno, probably your sheer, utter sexiness and the mind-blowing sex?" Kaeru retorted, earning a laugh from his girlfriend.

"Better be glad your girlfriend is _me_ , _teme_. Any normal girl would have left you for a comment like that."

"And we both know you're _far_ from normal," Kaeru chuckled. Anko scoffed again.

"Fuck normal! It's too damn boring!" the room was silent save for their content breathing for a few minutes. "So are they your team, or what?"

"Not yet," Kaeru replied. "I'm giving them the 'second test'."

"You're a cruel motherfucker, Kaeru-kun," Anko laughed. "Are you sure you don't want to join the Torture and Interrogation Department?"

"Bah, it's just a simple mind over matter test. Nothing like your stuff."

" _Hai, hai_. You'll never compare to the sexiness that is Anko-sama!" Anko cheered, kissing Kaeru's cheek. They both closed their eyes, snuggling up to one another. Absentmindedly, Anko traced the little golden band on her left hand, on her ring finger.

 **XXXXX**

Across the village in the Haruno household, Sakura was gushing over the little rabbit in the cage. "It's so adorable! I think I'll name you… Menma-kun." Sakura blinked a little bit, wondering where that name could have possibly come from. "Menma…kun… What an odd name…" Shrugging, the girl continued to pet the little creature.

On the opposite side of the village, not far from Anko's apartment, Sasuke laid in bed in the Uchiha Clan compound in his old room. He stared at the book in his hand, every so often glancing at the small, fuzzy brown creature in the cage beside his bed. Scraps of lettuce littered the bottom of the cage. The rabbit seemed to be looking earnestly at Sasuke. Or rather, what he was eating. In his hand was a plate of tomato slices, of which he'd pop into his mouth from time to time. Once more he glanced at the rabbit that his cousin had given him. "What a strange test…" he mumbled, tracing the rabbit's eyes to his snack. "You want some?" Sasuke blinked and picked up a tomato slice and held it to the edge of the cage, slipping it in past the bars. Quickly, the rabbit ate the red food and held its face against the cage, as if asking for more. "I guess you're kinda cute. I wonder what part you have in this test… Here, have another." Slowly, the two began to bond over tomatoes.

Out in the slums of the village near the West Gate, Naruto stared blankly at his rabbit. In turn, the rabbit stared back at the boy. "What a weird test," Naruto said aloud. His eyes squinted as he looked at the little creature. "Oh well. I guess you want food, right?" Naruto smiled and got up as the kettle on his stove began to whistle. He opened two packets of instant ramen, chicken and miso flavored, and poured the boiling water into the small cups. He closed the lids and waited three minutes before taking the chicken flavor and eating it. He glanced at the miso flavor and poured it into a small bowl, cutting up the noodles into small pieces and placing it in the fridge. "It bet you can't eat hot stuff like I can, huh?" he asked the rabbit. "Just gimme a little bit and I'll have your dinner all ready!" After about five minutes Naruto checked on the ramen. After ensuring it was about room temperature, he placed the bowl in the rabbit's cage. The small mammal eagerly ate the meal. "Hehehe! You really like this stuff too, huh? Well eat up! Tomorrow I finally get to be a ninja! Goodnight Miso-chan!" Turning off the light, Naruto pulled on his nightcap and went to bed.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Training Ground Seven, June 12** **th** **)**

The next day saw Training Ground Seven occupied by Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto, all three of which were leaning against a pole in the middle of the clearing. Sakura sat in the middle with Naruto and Sasuke on her left and right, respectively. Both Naruto and Sakura were talking about their rabbits, while Sasuke chimed in occasionally. It was a rather quaint scene that Kaeru arrived in.

"Good morning brats," he greeted, each of the three responding in turn. "So, are you ready for the third part of the test?"

"But _sensei_ , I thought this was the second part?" Sakura asked. Kaeru blinked and was silent for a moment. " _Sensei_?"

"Oh, yeah," Kaeru nodded slightly as the girl felt a bead of sweat trickle down the side of her head. "Anyway, give me your rabbits please." Each of the students gave Kaeru their rabbits. "Now stay here while I verify these are the same ones."

"Can't you do that here, Kaeru- _sensei_?" Naruto asked. The man laughed.

"Do you really want to watch me shove my hand up their asses to pick out a-"

"Just go!" Sakura shrieked. Kaeru laughed a little bit more and left with the three rabbits, returning a few minutes later and tossing the cages back to the children.

"Now then," he grinned, tossing a kunai to their feet. "The second part of your exam. Kill your bunnies."

 _ **"WHAT!?"**_

 __"B-But _sensei_ -" Sakura's lip trembled. Kaeru's eyes suddenly hardened, and a feeling of fear washed over the wannabe _genin_.

"I said kill them," he spoke in a hard voice. "Kill them or each and every one of you fail, and I send you back to the academy. No, I'll make it so you _never_ become shinobi."

"Kaeru-niichan! That's not fair!" Sasuke growled angrily. "You told us to take care of these animals!"

"I said to take them home and bring them back today," Kaeru responded harshly. "I never said anything about taking care of them." He sneered. "In the shinobi world you will be forced to kill. You may find another way, but if you don't you will have to kill." He seemed to glance at Naruto when he said this. "Now slit their throats! Now! Or none of you become shinobi! Ever!" Naruto screamed and raised his kunai. Sasuke and Sakura watched with wide eyes as the kunai plunged deep into the brown furred rabbit, blood spurting from the back of its neck as it died instantly. "Sakura!"

Said pink haired girl began to cry as she did the same as the blonde. "I'm sorry!" she cried repeatedly. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Oh Kami I'm sorry!" Like her teammate, she killed the rabbit instantly. She began to weep loudly as the rabbit went still, and didn't even seem to mind that Naruto had started to comfort her by hugging her. Kaeru's eyes rested on Sasuke, who was staring at the little creature in his arms.

"Sasuke. Kill it."

"I… I can't!"

"If you can't kill this rabbit what makes you think you can kill Itachi?"

"Shut up! You don't know anything!"

"Itachi killed my family too, Sasuke! If you don't kill this rabbit than that means you want _me_ to avenge our clan! You can pussy out all you want, stay in the village and-"

"HAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!" Sasuke suddenly raised his hand up, and with a pained cry he stabbed the neck of the rabbit. It squealed loudly before it died. Sasuke dropped the now dead rabbit and fell to his hands and knees, puking whatever he had for lunch. Kaeru stood impassively and sighed.

"You pass," he said. "Now listen to me." While Naruto glared at Kaeru, Sakura's eyes were filled with tears. It took Sasuke a moment to stop vomiting before he rested his weak eyes on his cousin. "Do you hate me?" All three students nodded. "Good."

"Good!?" Naruto shouted. "Why is it good that we just murdered a bunch of innocent rabbits!?"

"It isn't," Kaeru replied. "It's good that you don't enjoy killing. If you had, I would have failed you for sure. In the shinobi world, it is not our works that define who we are. It's our humanity. You all pass." Suddenly the world shimmered and wavered, and Sakura's eyes widened as the corpses of the rabbits disappeared, only to reveal the rabbits still in their cages at their feet. "Now, we'll begin missions tomorrow. Meet me at the base of the Hokage Estate at sunrise."

"Wait, what just happened?" Naruto asked loudly.

"He put us under a genjutsu," Sakura proclaimed, staring at their _sensei_. "He made us believe we were following his orders and killing our rabbits while we just sat here doing nothing!"

"Eh…" Naruto's face went blank. "Genjutsu…?" Sakura growled.

"Naruto- _baka_!" she yelled, pounding her fist into the top of Naruto's head. "Don't make me explain it _again_!" With that, Kaeru vanished in a swirl of leaves.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Hokage's Office, June 12** **th** **)**

"That was a very cruel thing to put them through, Kaeru-san," Hiruzen chided the man. "What exactly were you hoping to get out of your tests?" The other _Jounin_ stood patiently as Kaeru stepped forward.

"My first test was to test their willingness to work together," Kaeru explained. "While I took Sakura out early, both Naruto and Sasuke seemed to have no trouble teaming up once they realized that they had no chance on their own."

"And do tell why you removed Sakura from this test?" the Third Hokage asked.

"Because I knew she'd do anything Sasuke did," Kaeru revealed. "While I knew this, I also knew that getting Naruto and Sasuke to work together would be like trying to mix oil and water. If they could put their differences aside, surely Sakura would as well."

"And what's the meaning of your second test?" Iruka asked impatiently. "There's a reason we don't submit our students through such emotional turmoil!"

"Shush, Iruka-san," Kaeru gave the teacher a pointed look. "You're here for observation only, remember?" The scarred _Chunin_ grumbled but otherwise remained quiet. "I committed them to my second test to see how willing they were to take a life, and how determined they were to be shinobi. Someone who won't put their all into being a shinobi should not take up such a duty. We can't afford to take in people who will quit at the first sign of trouble." A few of the other _Jounin_ nodded in agreement. "As for their willingness to take a life, I wanted them to hesitate. Anyone who can kill without question or regret is dangerous not only to our enemies, but to Konohagakure itself. If they got false orders to kill another Konoha shinobi, would you want someone who kills without question, or someone who looks underneath the underneath before committing to the order?" Hiruzen seemed to think a moment over those words. After a few minutes a slight smile crossed his face.

"You were a wise investment, Kaeru-san," Hiruzen complimented.

"Thank you Hokage-sama," Kaeru replied. Hiruzen raised a finger.

"However, what you did was reckless and could very well have ended the careers of three promising shinobi before they even began. Be careful you do not take your actions too far." Kaeru stayed silent, but nodded. "You are dismissed. Next, Team Eight."

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Akamichi Barbeque, June 12** **th** **)**

"You know, maybe I should start wearing a skirt," said the violet haired Mitarashi. "I mean, I know my body is too sexy to keep hidden, maybe I should show off more." Her dining partner sighed and rolled her eyes.

"I'm sure Kaeru-kun wouldn't appreciate that," the brunette stated. Anko merely snorted and rolled her eyes. "Really, I'm surprised he puts up with you just wearing fishnet and that trenchcoat."

"Because he knows I'll kick his ass if he told me not to!" she replied. "Really, Rin-san, you worry too much! I'm fine as I am and he knows it!" Rin rolled her eyes and sighed.

"I know, I know," she spoke exhaustedly. "You two are just inseparable." Anko smirked and blew the girl a raspberry.

"Hello, mind if I join you?" spoke a voice beside the table. The women turned to see a woman with dark raven tresses and bright red eyes. She had on colorful clothing as well as a flak jacket.

"Sure, sure. Come sit next to me, Kurenai-chan," Rin smiled and patted the seat next to her, which the Ice Queen of Konoha graciously accepted. "We're just talking about Anko-chan's clothing choice. Or lack of, really." Kurenai sighed and gave Anko a disapproving look.

"Anko-chan, I thought we went over your clothing habits," Kurenai scolded lightly. The younger woman shrugged, taking a stick of dango into her mouth. "Pay attention to me when I speak to you young lady." Anko snorted.

"Hah! Since when have I ever been considered a 'lady'?" she asked sarcastically. "I'm a smexy bitch through and through! And don't you forget it!" Anko laughed loudly and obnoxiously as both Kurenai and Rin sighed exhaustedly. "So how's Obito-san?" she asked Rin as soon as her laughing stopped. Rin perked up a little.

"Tobi-kun has gotten stable recently," she said happily. "I've finally been able to get most of his wounds healed, and Inoichi-san is entering his mind once a week to get rid of his mental block to free him from his coma." The other two women nodded, indicating that they were still listening. "He should be up shortly, they say. I certainly hope so, anyway."

"And how about Asuma-san? How's your little 'secret'?" Anko asked Kurenai. The Ice Queen blushed, looking around nervously for eavesdroppers.

"We're well," she said curtly. Her look then turned sly. "How about you and Kaeru-kun? I see you have an engagement band on, Anko-chan." The violet haired woman scoffed and crossed her arms, though a light dusting of pink could be seen on her cheeks.

"Yeah, well, at least we aren't all hush-hush about it," she returned. "But yeah, we haven't set a date or anything, but… he proposed a few months ago out of nowhere." She laughed. "And it was after we had sex!"

"Oh dear Kami, that man is hopeless," Rin sighed, rubbing her forehead. "Tobi-kun wouldn't stop thanking me after we had our first time… It's sweet, but it's kind of embarrassing…" Kurenai grinned triumphantly and crossed her arms.

"It seems like Asuma-kun is the only one of our lovers who's actually a man," she gloated. Anko rolled her eyes.

"I'm sure Kaeru-kun is more of a man than Asuma-san," Anko challenged. "In fact, Asuma-san is probably the weakest of our men. Obito-san and Kaeru-kun could kick his ass any day!" Kurenai pouted at that.

"That's because your men are Uchiha," she grumbled. "It isn't exactly a fair fight."

"Oh please," Rin spoke with a sly smile. "Even without their _**Sharingan**_ , Asuma-san wouldn't stand a chance. I mean, _Kudo no Obito_ (Obito of the Void)."

" _Shitai no Kaeru_ (Kaeru of the Corpse)," Anko added smugly. "And… Oh, I'm sorry. Asuma isn't even an S-rank in any Bingo book!" Both Rin and Anko laughed together as Kurenai tried to sink deeper into her seat. "Face it. Asuma's pretty much the weakest of the Elite _Jounin_. Hell, even Kakashi-san is stronger than him. And he's only got one eye!" Kurenai smirked, though.

"At least Asuma-kun in politically experienced," she replied with dignity. Both of her friends simply gave her blank stares.

"Obito-kun is pretty much a shoe-in for Hokage if he ever wakes up," Rin stated flatly.

"And Kaeru-kun is a good runner up as soon as he finishes being a _Jounin-sensei_ ," Anko added in the same tone. There was silence for a moment before Kurenai groaned loudly, both of her friends laughing at her expense. Not long after they were all kicked out for being overly loud and disturbing the dining experience of the other customers.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, In Front of the Hokage Estate, June 13** **th** **)**

Kaeru sat silently while he waited for his team to appear. So far Sasuke had arrived, but Sakura and Naruto were missing. The two _genin_ arrived a few minutes after the sun was visible over the village walls, talking slightly animatedly to one another. While Kaeru didn't pry, he could hear that it was about his little cousin. The conversation ended as soon as they got close, but he could tell that Sakura seemed to be getting more comfortable with Naruto.

"So everyone's here," Kaeru acknowledged. "Now before we go in, I should tell you that we won't be going on any dangerous missions for a while." While Sakura simply looked a bit disappointed, Sasuke and Naruto looked angry. "Listen, in the eyes of Konohagakure you're all still newbies. It doesn't matter if you have any skill, you will be taking D-rank missions until I deem you ready. If you want to complain, you can quit being a shinobi right now." He gave them all a hard look. While Naruto and Sasuke still both looked pissed, they didn't say a word as Team Seven entered the base of the Hokage Estate. They went up past the reception desk without hassle, though Naruto got a nasty glare from the woman behind the desk. Even though both Sakura and Sasuke noticed this, they didn't pay it any attention. Naruto was a troublemaker after all.

On the second floor was a large room with a few desks and mission scrolls on each one in the corner. The rest of the room was a lobby that separated into offices. There were three desks lined up against the balcony with the letters 'D', 'C', and 'B' from left to right, respectively. While all three _genin_ stared at the 'B' table hungrily, they reluctantly followed their _sensei_ to the 'D' table. A _Chunin_ sat at the table, a bored expression on his face.

"Yo," Kaeru greeted. The _Chunin_ grunted in response, tossing Kaeru a random mission scroll. "Tch, _teme_." Kaeru smiled and turned to his students, opening the scroll and reading it. "Well, kids, it looks like we're painting a fence today." Both Naruto and Sasuke groaned. "Ah, suck it up boys. See? Sakura isn't complaining."

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Konoha General Hospital, Room 219, June 19** **th** **)**

Rin sat calmly with her eyes shut as Inoichi sat slumped on the chair opposite of her to the bed. It had been a half hour since he'd gone in. If he wasn't out in a few more minutes, she'd have to wake him up manually. To be honest, she wanted that to happen. If he got trapped, it meant that Obito's conscious was starting to stir. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be as she noticed the platinum blonde man start to rise. Rin opened her eyes and slowly stood.

"How is Tobi-kun?" she asked immediately. Inoichi gave her a similar serious look.

"His mind is still fractured, but there's progress," he stated. "I can't stress enough how lucky he is to have been found by Kaeru-kun. If he had experienced any more mental stress, than Obito-san would be beyond repair." Rin nodded. "In a few more sessions he should be well enough to recover on his own."

"Thank you, Inoichi-san," Rin sighed in relief. She stared at the relaxed face of her boyfriend. "I can't thank you enough for helping him."

"It's my duty as a Konoha shinobi and as your comrade," the blonde replied dismissively. Rin nodded. "I should get going. My wife will have my head if I'm late for dinner!" The two shared a short laugh. "It's nice to have some work though. T&I has been pretty slow recently and I need to pull my weight as the man of my family. Well, I'm off. Have a good night, Rin-san."

"Goodnight, Inoichi-san," Rin replied. The blonde left the room silently and Rin made her way to the window, watching the sun set over the skyline. It was something of a habit she had made while taking care of Obito. Below, she could see stores beginning to open up for the night, while others closed up for the day. She could aso see Team Seven as they came in to report their mission completed. She smiled as she saw Naruto carrying a very angry cat. That had been hell. Ah, to pass on the Will of Fire.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Training Ground Seven, July 10** **th** **)**

"Right, one more time," Kaeru commanded. His girlfriend smirked as she stood in the middle of the clearing.

"C'mon brats! I can take it!" she taunted. "You won't even lay a finger on me! Ahahaha!" Sasuke suddenly burst from the ground underneath the woman, grabbing her by the ankles. "Eh? Not bad _gaki_!" Anko grinned and spat out her dango stick, impaling Sasuke's hand and loosening his grip enough for her to break her left foot free of his grip and stomp on his other hand.

" _ **Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**_ **(Multiple Shadow Clone Technique)**!" Naruto cried from the treeline. Pops could be heard all around as the forest was suddenly filled with hundreds of Narutos. The blondes all surged forward towards Anko, and were upon her in seconds. "Yeah! We got you now!"

"Not so fast, gaki!" Anko grinned as she flung off her trenchcoat. The eyes of every blonde went wide, as well as Sasuke's who had just emerged from the ground. "You're open!" As both boys ogled the violet haired woman, she burst into action and started beating down the blondes. "This is too easy Kaeru-kun!" she laughed sadistically as she cut through the clones ranks, who had just started realizing that they were still in a fight and were attacking, albeit weakly.

"Shannaro!" Sakura screamed, jumping out from the treeline, a fire in her eyes. "Put your damn clothes on!" She roared with righteous fury as she slammed her fist into the ground that Anko had just been at, the ground collapsing in on itself. Quickly, Anko vanished and reappeared in front of the pink haired girl, chopping the back of her neck. Sakura burst into a plume of smoke and suddenly burst from the crowd of attacking Narutos. Sasuke followed her lead, attacking in the confusion. It was a strategy they had made with a little help from Kaeru. Naruto would overwhelm their enemy with numbers, and Sakura and Sasuke would attack in all the confusion, using _**Kawarimi no Jutsu**_ **(Body Replacement Technique)** to switch with a clone whenever they were about to be hit. It was a hit and run tactic that relied on overwhelming numbers, confusion, and overwhelming force.

" _ **Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu**_!" Sasuke's voice cried out from above. In all the confusion, Sasuke had leapt above to get a better eye on Anko and had formed handseals on the way up. Anko looked up to see the end result, a giant fireball next to the sun rushing down at her. She grimaced. With the clones surrounding her she would be trapped, and with Sakura distracting her, anyone unsuspecting would be caught in the blast while they tried to deal with her overpowering strikes. Unfortunately for them, Sasuke had leapt up too high, giving her ample room to escape before the fireball hit the ground, exploding and taking out multiple clones in the process.

"That's enough!" Kaeru's voice called out from the forest. In sequence, the clones started to pop in groups of ten as the _Jounin_ walked out into the clearing. Anko appeared next to him, smirking. "Well done, brats. You're really improving."

"Heh, just a second later and I woulda been caught by that," Anko complimented Sasuke as he came forward. She smirked and put on her trench coat as Sakura glared at her. "Get used to it, little girl. As a kunoichi your very body is a weapon. Well, mine is. Only a creepy pedo would want your flat tits." Sakura growled but did nothing else.

"Alright, brats," Kaeru smiled. "Time for some more training, and then we'll be finished for the day."

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Hokage Estate, August 5** **th** **)**

"Dammit, I'm sick of these stupid C-ranks!" Naruto shouted as they entered the second floor. Today, Hiruzen was taking the day off to pass out D-ranks to the _genin_ teams. "When are we gonna get a real mission, _Kaeru-sensei_?"

"Naruto, don't mess this up!" Sakura scolded the blonde in a whisper. "We're on probation in the first place, no way we'll get a decent mission right now!"

"I agree with the _dobe_ ," Sasuke spoke up, giving Kaeru a hard look. "It's clear we've already surpassed the point of these missions. A higher challenge would be good for us." Kaeru gave a 'hmm' and thought for a minute.

"C'mon Hokage-jiji! You gotta give us a good mission!" Naruto demanded. The Hokage hid an amused chuckle.

"Naruto! Don't you speak to Hokage-sama in such a way!" Iruka, who was sitting at the 'C-rank' table, shouted at the blonde. "You will address him with respect!"

"It's quite alright, Iruka-san," Hiruzen waved his hand dismissively and took a drag from his pipe. He looked to Kaeru. "What say you, Kaeru-san? Do you think Team Seven is ready?"

" _Hai_ ," Kaeru replied, his three _genin_ giving him a surprised look.

"Very well. Iruka-san, hand me that one on the edge."

" _Hai_ Hokage-sama." Iruka reached over and gave Hiruzen the C-rank mission.

"Let's see… You'll be escorting a bridge builder to Nami no Kuni," Hiruzen read aloud. "Is that acceptable, Kaeru-san?"

"Yes, that seems like a suitable task for them," Kaeru replied with a glint in his eye. Hiruzen gave the man an impassive stare.

 _What are you thinking, Kaeru-san…?_ he thought to himself. "Bring in the client," he called to the _Chunin_ at the door. The man nodded and exited. As the three _genin_ spoke excitedly, Kaeru seemed deep in thought. _You know something don't you Kaeru-san?_ Hiruzen thought. _But what is it that you know?_ Moments later the same man returned with a scraggly looking man with grey hair and wearing glasses. He wore standard clothes for a manual worker, a simple brown shirt and pants, with a sash around his waist. In his hand was a slightly filled bottle of _sake_.

"These are the brats? Great, I'll be dead on the first day with my luck," the man said. Naruto opened his mouth to speak, but with one glare from Sakura, he was silent.

"Don't worry, Tazuna-san," Kaeru feigned reading from the mission scroll. "My _genin_ are quite capable. Added to it, you have myself, _Sitai no Kaeru_ , to assist you as well." Tazuna smirked.

"Well, I guess not everything is hopeless if I'm being escorted by a man with 'corpse' in his title. These brats of your better not hold us back."

"Alright, everyone. We'll leave at the South Gate tomorrow at noon. You'd better pack up and get ready."

 **XXXXX**

 **Omake: Naruto meets Chichi and Kakarot** **2**

Kaeru and Anko walked down the street, hand in hand. "So I hear Obiot-san is starting mental therapy," Kaeru spoke, getting a nod from Anko. They walked further in silence on the way home from the movies, passing by a playground.

"Oh yeah!?" a voice called out. "Well I don't care! When I'm Hokage, I'll make you all pay!" Kaeru frowned, looking over at the voice. Naruto. He glanced at his girlfriend.

"Should we do something?" he asked. Anko sighed and crossed her arms. "He's the _Kyuubi Jinchuriki_ after all. He might not now, but someday he could make good on that threat." Anko groaned.

"Follow my lead, _baka_ ," she replied, making a ram seal and disappearing in a plume of smoke. In her place was Anko, but at eight years old. "C'mon, jackass! You're doing this with me!" Kaeru chuckled and shrugged, repeating her action. He groaned as he felt his hair change from long and awesome to the same bowl cut Gai had. Anko laughed. "Hah! I forgot how stupid your hair looked!"

"Let's just go," Kaeru grumbled, taking Anko's hand and leading her to the blonde. "Oi!" Naruto, who was grumbling as he sat on the empty swings, looked up.

"Why the stupid face, _gaki_?" Anko asked, crossing her arms.

"Who the hell are you two?" Naruto asked, sneering at them. Kaeru rolled his eyes.

"My name's… Kakarot," he replied.

"And I'm Chichi. Now get off your ass and let's do something!" Naruto's eyes widened as Anko spoke.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"What do you think? Let's go play!" Kaeru smiled. Naruto's face morphed into suspicion, then slight happiness.

"Ok! My name's Uzumaki Naruto, and I'm gonna be-"

"Shut up and let's go do something already!" Anko shouted impatiently. Kaeru rolled his eyes and punched the girl in the arm, earning his a raspberry. They spent the next few hours playing.

 **XXXXX**

 **A/N: Whoo! Finally! Damn, we're finally at the main story. Ok, this was fun. I can't wait to write more. Sorry about those time skips during training, but nothing really interesting happens then aside from the Tora missions and even that gets old. So I decided to focus on the other characters, show that the kids are actually training, and so on.**

 **I hate how Naruto is the only one who uses Shadow Clones in the beginning. I mean, later on everyone can use clones. So clones won't be special to just Naruto. Expect to see more of them than in canon.**

 **A little nod to lord of the land of fire's** _ **That Look.**_ **It's a great story, but incomplete. I recommend it though. It's an engaging read and I miss it dearly. I hope someday he decides to resume it. You might also note I got the rabbit test from his works. I changed it up a bit and changed the reasoning some, but his stories inspire me and I want to show him a little love.**

 **Anyway, can't wait till the next one. Ja ne!**


	5. Chapter Two, The Demon and the Corpse

**Kaeru-sensei does not own Naruto, and he never will.**

"Regular Speak"

" _Emphasized Speak"_

" _ **Multiple Shouting/Jutsu"**_

" **Bijuu/Demon Speak"**

 _Thoughts/Japanese Words_

 _ **Bijuu/Demon/Inner-Sakura Thoughts**_

 **A/N: Just a warning, this will get dark. At this point everything will become more serious, and a lot less kid friendly. So take a note here and prepare yourself for some major darkness.**

 **XXXXX**

 **Chapter Two: The Demon and the Corpse**

 **(South Road Out of Konohagakure, August 6** **th** **, Thirteen Years After Kyuubi)**

The three _genin_ spoke animatedly as they walked down the road. Kaeru took a relaxed position to the rear beside their client, Tazuna. The two men were silent, with Kaeru reading his book as he walked, and Tazuna not really showing any interest in the others. As they walked, the three _genin_ were slowly silenced as they began to hear a strange sound from behind them. Turning around, they all saw Kaeru with a slight blush and a barely restrained smile on his face. The sound, as they soon found out, was that of light giggling that would escape Kaeru's mouth every so often. Their faces all fell in disappointment. While they had become aware of their _sensei's_ extremely well restrained perverseness during the time they'd known him…

 _He's really reading that garbage in front of a client…?_ Sakura's right eye twitched slightly. _**What a pervert!**_

 _That's disgraceful of you, Kaeru-niichan_ , Sasuke scowled and turned away. _Especially on a mission…_ Both Naruto and Sakura followed suit not long after.

"'But please, Raeku-kun, my loins desire you much as my heart does!' whispered Kano. Raeku sighed and rubbed the back of his head with slight embarrassment," all of a sudden, Kaeru's voice came to life, seeming to be unknowingly reading aloud from his book. "'Ah, but Kano-chan, what of Mijack- _sensei_? He surely wouldn't approve of his two students making love during a mission! Especially because they can hear us in this tent that isn't soundproof!' Raeku protested. Kano ignored him, and rubbed her bare body against his, the heat of their flesh pressing against each other magnified by the extremely small sleeping bag. "'Please, Raeku-kun… I can't take it! Impale me on your-'"

 **"KAERU-** _ **SENSEI**_ **/NIICHAN!"** All three students shouted, their faces entirely red. However, a small trickle of blood seemed to be leaking from Sakura's nostril. Before either of her teammates could notice, though, she had wiped it away. Tazuna was blushing, himself, and was starting to walk a bit oddly. Kaeru smirked, looked up from his book at his students, and laughed.

"Can't handle quality literature, hm?" he asked mockingly. All three of his students gave him disdainful glares, making him laugh even more. "Ah, that was great! I love having _genin_!" His eyes glinted with mischief, and a sly smile adorned his face.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Road to Nami no Kuni, August 6** **th** **)**

The sun was starting to set over the trees, and Team Seven had decided to pull to the side of the road and set up camp. As Kaeru and Tazuna set up tents, it was Sasuke's job to gather wood for a fire, and the job of Naruto and Sakura to catch a meal. While they had complained that they had brought food, Kaeru had insisted, telling them that it was survival training to catch food for themselves and their teammates. Begrudgingly, the pink and blonde haired _genin_ had relented, with Sasuke smirking at them for getting a relatively easy job. As the sun was just over the horizon, it saw both Naruto and Sakura on their stomachs under a bush, watching a net trap that the kunoichi had set up, and Naruto fingering the kunai in his leg pouch if any larger animals came through.

"We've been here for at least an hour…" Naruto whined. "When is something exciting gonna happen!?" Sakura punched Naruto in the side of the head. " _Itai…_!" Naruto hissed in pain. "Sakura-chan…!"

"Shut up, Naruto- _baka_!" the pink haired girl hissed through clenched teeth. "You'll scare everything away if you're so loud!" She got grumbles in response, but Naruto was otherwise silent. She glanced at the four squirrels that Naruto had caught. "How the hell did you get so much, anyways?" Naruto laughed a bit and gave her a shit eating grin.

"I'm just super awesome like that!" Naruto bragged, receiving another punch to the face, " _Itai_! What the hell!?"

"Shut the hell up, _baka_!" Sakura seethed. "Kami, you're hopeless!" Instead of answering, Naruto flung a kunai out of the bush, making Sakura jump. "Naruto-!" Without warning, the blonde crawled out from under their hiding spot and grabbed a dead object on the ground, a wild pig. He hoisted it on his shoulder and grinned at Sakura. Sakura slowly got up from the bush and sighed. "How the hell…?" Naruto, instead of bragging, shrugged.

"My luck's always been pretty good," he claimed. "I mean, I win every game I play and somehow I always make enough to survive." Sakura shot her blonde teammate a confused look as she picked up the sack holding his previous kills.

"Survive?" Naruto froze when she picked at his word choice. "I mean, doesn't the orphanage take care of you?" Sakura realize her mistake as she saw Naruto's eyes become downcast when she spoke.

"The orphanage kicked me out as soon as I started attending the Academy…" he told her. "Someone started paying for me to live in a cheap apartment complex, but… I never found out who it was…" Unconsciously, Sakura began inching closer to her teammate as they started walking back to camp. They walked in silence, unaware of two pairs of eyes watching them from the nearby river, which slowly sunk back down into the water.

They arrived at camp with relative ease, though Naruto caught a few branches to the back of the head while walking backwards. It was obvious that he was flushed with embarrassment while Sakura was holding back her laughter. The pink haired girl took in the quaint camp when she noticed something.

" _Sensei_ ," she spoke to the man sitting by the campfire, "why are there only two tents?" Kaeru looked up from his book.

"Ah, because I don't need a tent," he replied. Sakura frowned at his answer.

"I mean, shouldn't we have one for all of us?"

" _Genin_ all sleep in one tent," Sasuke muttered. It was evident that he and Kaeru had gone over this discussion while she and Naruto were away. "Our client will sleep in the other tent."

"But _sensei_!" Sakura tried to protest, but the long haired man simply raised a hand to silence her.

"Sakura, as your career as a ninja continues, you will be subjected to having to share the same space with your teammates, even if they're male," he explained. "It's best to get over it now. Personal space for a shinobi is a luxury, not a right." Sakura's face became a bright red. She glared at Naruto.

"You better not peek at me while I get changed!" she growled at him. As she entered the tent she heard her teacher call out to her. She turned to face him.

"Always keep your weapons on you," was all he said, and she understood. It was best to always be ready, something he'd drilled into their heads during training. Taking the advice and filing it in her mind, Sakura entered the tent and got changed. When she came back out, dinner was ready. After their meal and Kaeru storing the rest of the meat in a storage seal, they all went to bed to ensure they were rested enough to wake up early and travel the next day.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Dream World)**

"Here again…" Kaeru muttered as he looked across the white plane. He hadn't been in this white world for a very long time. The last time had been the night before he pulled the _Kyuubi_ out of Kushina. "Where are you, you asshole?"

"Such a rude way to greet a man," the old man from years before seemed to shimmer into existence in front of Kaeru. "Especially one who is an old friend. Tell me, how is ruining the life of a young boy and killing off your entire family simply for your own amusement?" The salt and pepper haired man seemed to be frowning at him.

"It's none of your business," Kaeru responded. The man rolled his eyes.

"Ah, but you see… it is exactly my business. Who do you think brought you to this world after all?" Kaeru's eyes widened as the man spoke. "Who else would give you a second chance at life aside from… yourself?"

"You… You can't be me. I'm me!" Kaeru protested. The man merely clicked his tongue. "You're lying!"

"Of course I'm you. I'm the you that you could have been," the alternate Kaeru responded. "They call me Kai. I'm a husband, a father, and a grandfather. I may not always make the right choices, but I'm happy. You had the same choice as me, but blew it. So tell me, was it worth it?"

"Shut up!" Kaeru growled, lashing out at the man. His hand simply passed through Kai.

"I'm giving you another chance. At the end of your story you'll have a choice, since you've fucked this one up," Kai sighed, fading away. The world around Kaeru seemed to melt into a proud, regal looking school building made of steel. Leagues ahead in technology than the Shinobi world.

 _"I'm queen of the castle, I'm queen of the castle~"_ Kaeru heard a voice singing from the school. "Tell me Kaeru," Kai's voice echoed around him. "You have yet to learn humility. You're arrogant and see yourself above the laws of this world. What would happen if you were set under the command of someone you deem inferior to you, hm?" The world seemed to shimmer and shifted again to that of a cozy suburban home.

 _"Sweet dreams…"_ he heard a soft voice come from the house. "You're selfish," Kai continued. "You don't care for the lives of others, and only use them to toy with for your own amusement. What if someone had the power to do so with your own life? How would you feel being someone's puppet?" The world melted one more time into a busy, loud city. One like those he remembered from his life before.

 _"Now you'll see just how powerful I really am."_ Kaeru heard a strong voice announce. "You consider yourself a god among men in terms of strength. A hero. But what happens when your ideals place you under the category of a villain? What will happen when you meet a _real_ god among men?" The world faded to white once more. "I wonder… I wonder who will reach you first."

 **XXXXX**

 **(Road to Nami no Kuni, August 7** **th** **)**

The pack of five quietly walked down the path, the smell of seawater faint and the humidity beginning to rise. While Sakura was obviously uncomfortable with how the water in the air was affecting her hair, she was too busy giving Naruto the silent treatment to voice it. Sasuke was doing his best not to show his amusement from the blonde's accidental screw up, while Tazuna seemed to be glancing around more nervously as they approached the port town of Gyozaku in which they'd take a ferry to Nami no Kuni. Kaeru's eyes were glued to his book most of the time, but anyone experienced would notice his attention was on the upcoming puddle of water. He smirked and glanced at his team, who passed by the puddle without a second though. Kaeru's pace slowed behind Tazuna slightly as the two of them passed the water. He closed his eyes and chuckled as he sensed the genjutsu lift. Immediately, he heard the two attackers rush at him, and he performed _**Kawarimi**_ **(Body Replacement Technique)** as he felt the Demon Brothers' chains wrap around him. He hid behind a bush near the road and watched as Naruto and Sakura panicked.

Sasuke immediately sprung into action, rushing at the duo and taking a kunai, impaling it between the chains that connected the two brothers. Sakura, regaining her senses, immediately moved herself in front of Tazuna, a kunai ready to defend. She shouted at Naruto, who snapped out of his fear and joined Sasuke in beating down the older brother, with Sasuke committing the killing blow. They were, however, taken by surprise when the younger brother snapped the chain and lunged at Sasuke, slashing him across the back with his claw. That was when Kaeru decided to act.

" _ **Kaba Senko**_ **(Sparking Carver)**!" Kaeru growled, his entire arm lighting up in orange sparks as he rushed forward with _**Shunshin**_ , swinging his arm through the younger Demon Brother's neck as his body and head started to catch fire at the wound, frying from the inside out and taking only a few seconds to die. "Tch, weakling…" He growled, staring at the now dead and charred body of the younger Demon Brother. "Not even worth remembering their names." He walked over to the hunched form of Sasuke.

"W-Why does it hurt still…" Sasuke grunted. Kaeru ran his hand over the wound on his cousin's back, his hand glowing a slight forest green. Slowly a purplish liquid began seeping out of the wound. As it did, Sasuke began screaming in pain.

" _S-Sensei_ , what are you doing to Sasuke-kun!?" Sakura screamed in panic, not sure how to act.

"I'm drawing out the poison in the wound," Kaeru explained. "Now shut up and let me work." There was silence as the last drops of poison were drawn from Sasuke's blood. Oddly enough, Kaeru let the liquid seep into a vial he had in his flak jacket pouch. With that finished, he stood and bandaged the wound. Tazuna looked to be about on the verge of a mental break down. Kaeru glanced at him. "You know, I've heard stories of an 'illegal' bridge being built in Nami no Kuni. Apparently some fellow named Gato isn't happy about it." He smirked when Tazuna's face paled. "You're the bridge builder, aren't you?"

"Y-Yes sir…" Tazuna's face was covered in sweat.

"You know, this would technically be considered a B-rank at least given the risks. Nami no Kuni's been on the down low of the pay grade recently. You just wanted cheap labor, didn't you?"

"Y-Y-Yes sir…" Tazuna's voice grew more frantic. "Please, I have a daughter and grandson! The country is in no shape to pay anything higher than a C-rank!" Kaeru glanced at his students.

"What do you say kids? Should we keep going?" he asked. Sasuke nodded immediately.

"There's no way I'm turning down from a challenge," he said with a smirk.

"I'd never turn down people who need help!" Naruto announced. Everyone stared at Sakura, who backed up slightly from nervousness. "Well Sakura-chan? We can totally do this! This is what we signed up for!"

"C'mon, we don't have all day," Sasuke grumbled. Kaeru chopped Sasuke's head, forcing the boy to stay silent.

"Well, Sakura? What say you?" Kaeru asked once more.

"O-Ok…" she finally squeaked out. "Let's… Let's keep going!"

 **XXXXX**

 **(Road to Dokkumachi, Nami no Kuni, August 7** **th** **)**

 _Any minute now…_ Kaeru thought to himself as he and his group walked the misty path to Tazuna's village. They'd just crossed the waters beside the incomplete bridge and had made it safely to shore. Their path was uneventful, but Team Seven was about to face their first major milestone. Arguably their toughest challenge. While later on would be life changing battles in themselves, this was the only battle they would be severely undertrained for. Their first encounter with killing intent and an enemy who wanted you dead for nothing more than monetary reasons.

"Jeez, the fog sure is getting thick…" Sakura grumbled, trying to pull the knots out of her hair. "Say, how far is this village, anyways?"

"Just another hour of walking," Tazuna replied. "We'll be there soon." Kaeru smirked as a small lake came into view.

"Hey look, a rabbit!" Sakura cried out, running over to a small, white critter that had hopped out from the foliage. Kaeru noticed Sasuke tense slightly upon seeing the rabbit allow Sakura to get close to it. "Aww, it's so cute and white! Hey _sensei_ , why are our rabbits brown and this one white?"

"That rabbit must belong to someone," Kaeru responded. "A rabbit kept in captivity won't need to shed its winter coat." Sasuke tensed even more.

" _Sensei_!" he called.

"Everyone down!" Kaeru yelled. Without question, he and the other four members of his party dropped to the ground as a huge blade came flying out from the brush. Kaeru slowly got up as a man appeared on the handle of the curved, indented blade which had impaled itself within a tree. "I see. So it was you, _Kirigakure no Kaijin_ (Demon of the Hidden Mist)." Kaeru stood and turned to face their attacker. While Kaeru could sense Haku in the woods around them, he kept quiet. "I must say, to meet an infamous swordsman such as yourself is quite the honor."

" _Shitai no Kaeru_ ," Zabuza responded, stepping off of the handle and bulling his blade out with ease. "You're younger than I anticipated. To gain such a name for yourself at your age is something to be congratulated." Zabuza's eyes never left Kaeru as he stretched his arms with his blade, Kubikiribocho as a result being swung around with ease. It almost looked like he was trying to show off, though Kaeru and Zabuza both knew that Zabuza was less than thrilled to be fighting a man with a higher threat reputation than himself, and at a younger age no less. "You're almost making me want to give up now and leave."

Kaeru smirked at the older man. "But we both know you want the challenge, don't you?" Zabuza rolled his eyes and held his blade with a wide, two handed stance, his body directly facing the group.

"I wouldn't be able to call myself a Shinobi if I didn't," the demon responded. "You might be an S-rank in the Bingo books, but I can still win!" With that, the Demon of the Hidden Mist slammed his blade into the ground beside him and quickly weaved handseals. " _ **Kirigakure no Jutsu**_ **(Hidden Mist Technique)**!" Almost immediately, a rolling cloud of mist covered the area, blinding everyone almost completely except for about a foot radius around themselves. Suddenly a sense of bloodlust washed over Team Seven and Tazuna.

 _Wha… What is this feeling…?_ Sasuke froze, his teeth clenched as he tried to choke back the fear he was feeling. _It's so overbearing… It can't be natural!_

 _I… I'm freezing up again…_ Naruto mentally screamed at himself, _How can I protect anyone if I keep freezing up again!?_

 _M-Mommy… Da-Daddy…_ Sakura's eyes slowly began to fill with tears, _Make it stop! Please, Kami, save me!_

 **"Eight Points. Larynx. Spine. Lungs. Liver. Jugular. Spleen and Artery. Kidneys. Heart. Now… Which will I be killing you by…?"** Zabuza's voice echoed through the mist. With every word, Team Seven's panic increased to new heights as the feeling of bloodlust overwhelmed them. Tazuna had inadvertently wet himself in fear.

"Calm down kids," Kaeru's voice came from directly in front of the group. "He's using killing intent mixed with intimidation. Anko-chan's done worse to you kids!" Zabuza's voice chuckled through the mist.

 **"I'm surprised someone of your status has been assigned to babysitting duty,"** he taunted, **"Did you piss someone off at home?"**

"I've pissed off a lot of people," Kaeru responded, reaching for a tanto strapped to the back of his hip. "I'm afraid you'll have to be one of them."

"You're open!" Zabuza suddenly appeared behind Kaeru, twirling his blade above his head for a moment before swinging down on Kaeru's head. A loud _Clang!_ was heard as metal struck metal, Kaeru's tanto drawn and pressed flat against the sharp edge of Kubikiribocho. The mist blew away at the force of the single strike, revealing Zabuza's surprised wide eyes at the knowledge that Kaeru was holding him back with a single arm, while he was putting all his force into the strike with both of his. "Shit!"

"You're open as well," Kaeru replied, ducking to the side of the strike as he removed his blade, sheathing it once more as Zabuza turned his blade and swung wide, aiming to strike the Uchiha. Kaeru kicked the blade up above him as he slashed with his tanto, quickly sheathing it once more after the move was completed.

"Guh!" Zabuza grunted as he felt blood trickle from the fresh wound. " _Kuso_ (Dammit)," he spat. "Not bad, _Shitai_. But you forgot something." Kaeru's eyes widened and his teeth clenched as he heard Sakura scream. He turned to his team and saw the girl fall to the ground, her right arm falling to the ground as another Zabuza chopped it off with his own weapon. The man then aimed his blade to strike Tazuna as everyone was too shocked to comprehend what had just happened.

"Sakura!"

"Sakura-chan!"

 **"ZABUZA MOMOCHI!"** Kaeru's voice roared out, causing the water clone aiming to kill Tazuna instantly dissipate into water, and the original to freeze. Waves upon waves of killing intent washed over the bandaged man, and he fell to his knees in fear. His eyes widened as Kaeru's deathly aura became visible. Kaeru turned to face the man, and Zabuza couldn't help but see the Shinigami itself seem to appear behind Kaeru's hate filled visage. He stared into the rapidly swirling red eyes of his foe, too afraid to move as red filled his vision. Kaeru's voice didn't boom. Nor did it echo. It was deathly calm, however. "Die." Kaeru commanded. Zabuza could feel his instincts trying to reach for his heavy blade, and he knew that if he couldn't resist, than his body would betray itself and force him to commit suicide. "Die!" Zabuza tried his hardest to look away from the Uchiha's eyes, but found it impossible. He swallowed hard as he felt his blade press against his neck. "DI-" Kaeru suddenly stopped, the feeling of death disappearing from the air. He blinked, before stumbling and falling to his knees, face pressed against the ground, revealing a single senbon sticking out the back of his neck. Zabuza felt his breathing slowly return to normal before several senbon struck him as well. He slowly felt the world fade to black.

 _Dammit… Haku… You bitch…_

 **XXXXX**

 **(Tazuna's House, Nami no Kuni, August 7** **th** **)**

Kaeru awoke to the sounds of sobbing. He glanced around. Dark, fuzzy shapes filled his vision. As his vision cleared, he recognized the shaggy hair of Naruto, leaning over a splotch of bright pink. _Sakura-chan…_ Kaeru thought, flashes of what had happened went through his mind, _I failed…_

"It's ok, Sakura-chan…" Naruto comforted the sobbing girl beside Kaeru. He spotted a bloody bandage wrapped around Sakura's right shoulder. Where her arm used to be. "It'll be ok… You can still be a ninja-"

"I don't want to be a ninja!" Sakura cried. "I just want to go home!" The girl wept harder as Naruto laid down beside the girl, receiving no protest from the pink haired female. "I just wanna go home…!"

"Naruto…" Kaeru rasped out, coughing in order to speak more clearly. "Let her cry herself out. When we get back to Konoha I'll allow her to… resign." Naruto's head popped up.

"But Kaeru- _sensei_!"

"Enough Naruto," Sasuke's voice came from the opposite side on Kaeru's left, from the doorway. He looked to see his cousin leaning against the doorframe, his arms crossed. "It's clear that Sakura isn't ready to be a shinobi. And from that wound, it's unlikely she ever will be. Let it go."

"Sasuke's right," Kaeru confirmed. "Sakura, your ninja career is done. You don't have to endure anymore." Sakura merely responded with tears. "You two won't be getting off so easily. You'll have to train down to the bones to make up for your lack of a third teammate."

"You'd better not hold me back, _dobe_ ," Sasuke grunted. Naruto paid the boy no attention as he rubbed Sakura's hair in an effort to calm her. Naruto remembered the first time a villager had tried to actually attack him, and the Hokage had done very similar things, such as staying close to him and rubbing his head. With a female, Naruto wasn't sure what to do, but he was doing the best he could.

"S-Sasuke-kun…?" Sakura mumbled as her sobs quieted, looking to see who was rubbing her head. "N-Naruto…? What are you doing…?" One could hear the hint of annoyance in her voice, but there was no force behind it.

"I'm just… doing what Hokage-jiji would do whenever I got hurt," Naruto replied. "He used to tell me stories, too. Do you want me to, um, tell you some he told me?" Sakura was silent for a while.

"Yeah…" the pink haired girl responded. "I want to hear stories…" As Naruto thought up a story to tell, Kaeru was slowly getting up and was about to leave to explore the house. Sasuke stared at his two teammates, unsure of what to think. On one hand, Naruto was actually serious, and had sworn revenge on Zabuza on Sakura's blood. Sakura would no longer be part of the team to hold them back, and seemed to have lost her interest in Sasuke in favor of her new lack of an arm. However, with the loss of Sakura, both and he and Naruto would have to work twice as hard to make up for a lacking member, and Naruto would no doubt be towards Zabuza like Sasuke could have been towards Itachi if Kaeru hadn't intervened.

Sasuke's eyes hardened at the thought of his brother. It was his destiny to take revenge for his clan, but he knew Kaeru could easily have killed his brother. In fact, in the mission report, Kaeru said he had let Itachi get away. Sasuke had been furious. How dare he let that traitor live! It was then Kaeru had revealed what his family was planning. While Sasuke understood his brother's actions then, he still knew his brother would have to face justice for his crime. With Naruto finally serious, that day could come much sooner.

"-and then Hokage-jiji was made Hokage!" Naruto finished his first story, kneeling on the ground beside Sakura's futon. The girl was no longer laying under the covers, but now above the futon with her head resting on Naruto's lap. Her cheeks were stained with tears, but she was no longer crying, focused instead on Naruto's storytelling. "Oi, oi, did I tell you about how I was able to paint the Hokage Monument?" Naruto asked excitedly. Sasuke's attention was caught, as was Sakura's if her confused look was anything to go by.

"A-Actually Naruto… I was wonder-ondering how someone like you could g-get away with tha-at…" Sakura managed through her hitched breathing. "Iruk-uka- _sensei_ never told us ho-ow. Just that-at you did."

"Well, first I…" Naruto spoke happily as he weaved his story. While Sasuke wasn't listening as closely as his pink haired teammate, he had to admit that it was an ingenous play of distracting the ANBU and _jounin_ within their own village with a series of smaller pranks, and while they took care of those, Naruto took his sweet time painting the beloved faces of the four Hokage. Nobody expected Naruto to pull something so bold, and since the monument is usually taken for granted, nobody looks at it too often. While a devastating blow to Konoha's pride, Naruto took advantage of what people pay attention to. "-but of course Iruka- _sensei_ completely ruined it when he caught me!"

From out of Sakura's voice came something she never would have expected herself to do around Naruto. Laughter. Sakura was laughing at something Naruto had done. For a moment, Naruto flinched when he heard her start, but slowly grinned widely as he realized he'd helped cheer up his favorite pink haired crush.

"Alright, team," Kaeru's voice appeared from the doorway, drawing the attention of the three _genin_. The man stood with a slight hunch. "We're going to start some training exercises. Sakura, you can stay here and rest. From this point on you're-"

"I want to come," Sakura announced, surprising everyone. "I… I have to help my team. At least once before I stop being a kunoichi." Kaeru closed his eyes in thought and, after a few seconds, nodded.

"You'll be the one protecting Tazuna," Kaeru said. "Because Zabuza is still alive."

"What!?" Naruto shouted. "But what about that guy that took him!?"

"From what Tazuna has told me, the Hunter Nin was a fake," Kaeru said. "Every Hunter Nin is supposed to take the head or defining aspect of their prey, and burn the rest. Also, they used senbon, something not attuned to killing but have the ability to set people in a deathlike trance. From what I can tell, Zabuza will need about a week to recover from such a knockout. We'll use that time to train and get ready for the inevitable recoil. Now then, how do you feel about learning some useful jutsu?"

 **XXXXX**

 **(Several Days Later, Nami no Kuni Clearing, August 12** **th** **)**

"I'm not hungry," Sakura grumbled as she pushed away from the table. Naruto opened his mouth to speak, but Kaeru rested his hand on the boy's shoulder as Sakura left the building. That little kid, Inari, was pissing her off. First he had the audacity to insult not only their skills, but Naruto and Sasuke's. Then later he'd gone into his sob story about losing his father, while sad, was nothing compared to Sasuke's. Then tonight during dinner he had the gall to say that they knew nothing of pain. The nerve! Naruto and Sasuke were both orphans! At least that little brat had family to comfort him and love him! And he had the balls to complain!

Sakura found herself in the clearing that she and the rest of Team Seven had been training in. She sighed, disappointed in how well her teammates were doing without her. Naruto had been training on his chakra control and been learning some tricks to his _**Kage Bunshin**_ , and Sasuke was learning different _**Katon**_ **(Fire Release)** jutsu, with a _**Raiton**_ **(Lighting Release)** jutsu in the works. Her? Well, she supposed she could be of use with some _**Suiton**_ **(Water Release)** jutsu. It wasn't as destructive as her teammates, but it was useful in Nami no Kuni.

Sakura took a moment to take a deep breath before weaving a short set of handseals. One handed seals were a pain to learn, but with her perfect chakra control, Kaeru had managed to teach her. " _ **Suiton: Suidan no Jutsu**_ **(Water Bullet Technique)**!" she shouted before holding a single seal to her mouth, spouting a powerful stream of water from her mouth towards a nearby tree. After a few seconds the jutsu ended, leaving her to see the bark from said tree had begun stripping away from her attack. She smiled. "Yes! I finally have something useful!" She inhaled again and took aim at another tree, repeating the jutsu time after time, making deeper groves with every shot of her jutsu before finally passing out from exhaustion and chakra drain.

The next morning, Sakura found herself waking up to something wet touching her cheek. She groaned, stretching her arm and looking over to spot the face of a small, white rabbit. "A rabbit…? Why are you here, little guy?" She slowly sat up and looked around, noticing she was still in the clearing she'd trained in the night before. Sakura groaned at her own stupidity. This was something Naruto would do. It took her a moment to realize that she wasn't alone.

"Hello," a very feminine voice greeted her. Looking to her right, she noticed a girl not much older than herself picking at the ground, and every so often placing what she took into a basket on her arm. "I see you're awake. How was your sleep?"

"Um… good I guess?" Sakura responded, a bit off put by the girl's friendly banter. "Who… are you?" The girl looker up, revealing her soft, delicate features and a dainty smile. She wore the slightest hint of cherry lipstick, and had her raven locks framing her face, making her look a bit more mature. The girl was wearing a light pink kimono with a flower print on it. For some reason, Sakura felt self-conscious.

"Ah, my name is Haku," the beauty replied. "I see from your headband that you are a kunoichi. Am I correct?"

"Y-Yeah…" Sakura replied, slowly getting up and walking over to Haku. "What are you picking, Haku-san?"

"Please, Haku-chan is fine," Haku replied, giving Sakura a soft smile. "May I ask why you're out here, kunoichi-chan?" She glanced at Sakura's stump of a right shoulder, making the pink haired girl unconsciously start holding it in her other hand.

"I'm here on a mission with my team…" Sakura nearly whispered, feeling a bit insecure about the girl looking at her disability. "We're protecting a bridge builder… Ano… what are you picking, Haku-chan?"

"I'm simply collecting herbs for medicine," Haku replied. "A dear… friend of mine is sick, and this medicine will help speed his recovery." Sakura nodded. "I would give anything for him… So I must fight to protect him."

"I know how you feel," Sakura replied. Haku gave the girl a curious look.

"Do you have someone precious to you?" Haku asked. Sakura smirked a little bit.

"Of course! Sasuke-kun!" Sakura replied almost triumphantly, taking a look at what Haku was picking and getting on her knees to do the same. "He would do anything for…" Sakura's voice trailed off. "Well, maybe not… anything…"

"Oh?" Haku seemed confused. "Are you unsure?"

"Well… He is… kinda distant…" Sakura admitted, slowly realizing the fact for herself. "But… But he said he liked my forehead at the academy! I mean, I've always been self-conscious about it, but he said he liked it! He must be the one for me! He's most precious to me!"

"Ah, so he must compliment it quite often," Haku concluded. Sakura stared at her fingers as they wrapped around a light pink flower with orange tips.

"Well… not… really…" Sakura murmured just loud enough for her companion to hear. "I mean, Naruto does sometimes when we're done with training, but… He's just so… Naruto…"

"Naruto-san? I'm assuming this must be your other teammate?" Haku asked. Sakura nodded in response. "He seems quite affectionate of you, while this Sasuke-san… you said he was quite distant." Haku paused. "Tell me, what jutsu are you required to learn at your academy?"

"That's easy," Sakura replied immediately. "The _**Kawarimi no Jutsu**_ , the _**Bunshin no Jutsu**_ , and the _**Henge no Jutsu**_."

"That last one… had all of you learned it at the time 'Sasuke-san' complimented you?" Haku asked.

"Of course, it was just after everyone but Naruto graduated!" Sakura replied. Haku seemed to think a moment.

"If that is true… do you suppose it's possible that Naruto-san had used _**Henge no Jutsu**_ to pose as Sasuke-san and speak to you?" Haku suggested. Sakura opened her mouth to protest, but Haku wasn't done. "And if Naruto-san hadn't graduated along with the rest of you, how is it that he is on a team with you and Sasuke-san? It seems to me that he must have done something worth noticing for anyone to pass him after failing the academy exams." Sakura was speechless. She hadn't thought of it that way. Could it be that her goofball of a teammate was actually shinobi material? Could it also be that Naruto, the one who had passed every _**Henge no Jutsu**_ exam with flying colors, could copy Sasuke to so much detail that she wouldn't be able to notice? Just to talk to her and ask her why she was interested in… It all made sense. "Ah, that is all I require," Haku spoke once more, slowly getting up and dusting off her kimono. "It has been a pleasure speaking to you, kunoichi-chan."

"O-Oh! Nice to meet you too, Haku-chan!" Sakura replied, breaking out of her thoughts. She did the same as Haku left the clearing. "I… should probably go back and talk to Naruto."

 _"Hey! You stop making her cry right now!"_ Sakura paused as she heard a voice. Though looking around, she was all alone. _"I'll be Hokage and make sure nobody hurts anyone. I swear it!"_

"Who… Who's there?" Sakura asked nervously, looking around. There was no answer, ad after a few minutes, the pink haired _genin_ relaxed and continued walking back to Tazuna's house, in her hands the small flower that she had picked from before.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Nami no Kuni, Path to Bridge Construct, August 14** **th** **)**

"Are you really sure it was a good idea to leave Sakura-chan behind, Kaeru- _sensei_?" Naruto asked. The older man nodded and sighed.

"Sakura can handle anyone that might try to harm Tazuna's family," Kaeru replied. "She's gotten quite strong. Her jutsu is effective and her natural rage can allow her to pummel anyone. Have faith in your teammate, Naruto."

"She'll be fine, _dobe_ ," Sasuke agreed. "Nothing's going to happen." Tazuna simply nodded as a heavy mist rolled in the closer they got to the bridge.

"That can't be right…" Tazuna said. "Today should be clear!" Kaeru sighed as they came upon the bridge. "Where is everyone? They should be working already!"

"I see you've made it," a familiar voice echoed from the fog, his silhouette slowly becoming visible. "I was hoping for a rematch, _Shitai no Kaeru_. That last one didn't satisfy my appetite!" Beside him stood a smaller, more delicate figure wearing the Hunter Nin mask. Kaeru simply approached the man through the mist, Naruto and Sasuke both following closely behind. "Heh, looks like your shrimps are scared shitless! They're shaking!"

"I'm not shaking from fear," Sasuke spoke just loud enough for the opposing two to hear. "I'm shaking from excitement!"

"I said I was going to kill you…" Naruto growled. "I swore it on Sakura-chan's blood! I'll kill you!" With a mighty roar of anger, Naruto charged the _Kirigakure no Kaijin_ (Demon of the Hidden Mist).

 **XXXXX**

 **(Nami no Kuni, Tazuna's House, The Same Moment)**

Sakura awoke to the sounds of fighting downstairs. She jumped up out of her futon, looking around for any signs of her team. Not finding them, she looked at the clock. "I slept in!" She hurriedly stripped out of her clothes, only to be taken by surprise when the door opened, revealing an ugly mug of some stranger. "KYAAAAAAA!" Sakura screamed as she did her best to keep her modesty, but with only one hand she could only hide her meager breasts, having to cross her leg to hide her womanhood.

"Hey Tujo, we got some little brat up here!" the thug yelled down the stairway, not taking his eyes off of Sakura's nubile form. He grinned with crooked teeth as he approached the innocent, one armed girl. His friend appeared at the doorway and grinned. "Hehehe, I'll bet she's a virgin! Only one way to find out!" the thug lunged at Sakura dna grabbed her by the neck, quickly pulling off his clothes.

"Dammit, Kuro, why the hell do you get first turn!?" Tujo protested.

"Cause I found the bitch first! You can have that woman down on the first floor, I'll bring this cunt down when I'm finished!" Sakura choked and gasped in the man's grip, staring down in fear as his member was revealed to her.

"N-No!" she cried, tears pooling up in her eyes. "Please st-stop!" She screamed loudly as she felt that… thing press against her. "NO! PLEASE KAMI PLEASE DON'T DO THIS! I'LL DO ANYTHING!" In desperation, Sakura took a deep breath and began her one handed seals. " _ **Suiton: Suidan no**_ -" her jutsu was interrupted as the man grabbed her hand and crushed it in his own. " _ITAAAAAIIII_!"

"RAAAAAAAH!" the man howled with excitement as Sakura became impure.

 **XXXXX**

 **Omake: An Unpleasant Wake Up Call**

 **(Road to Nami no Kuni, Team Seven Camp, August 7** **th** **)**

"Oi! Time to wake up, kids!" Sakura awoke to their _sensei_ banging on their tent and shaking it. "Get your shit packed and ready to move! We leave in a half hour!" With that, the noise stopped. Sakura was only partially awake, and noticed a warm sensation wrapping around her that wasn't there the night before. Instead of questioning it, she mumbled and let her sink into the infectious warmth. Then she realized where she was. And on which side the warm feeling was coming from. Sakura's eyes widened as she sat up quickly. Beside her, Naruto yawned and stretched as he felt his warm pillow move away. He mumbled a bit before his eyes slowly opened.

"Eh…? Mornin' Sakura-chan…" he yawned out. What he failed to notice was the pure indignation radiating off of his teammate.

" _NARUTO-BAKA! YOU PERVERT!"_

Outside, Sasuke, Kaeru, and Tazuna all ate their breakfast in silence, as they listened to the sounds of the quaint wildlife around them. "Please Sakura-chan! Have mercy!"

" _SHANNARO!"_

"What did I do!?"

Yes, the road to Nami no Kuni was a very peaceful road.

 **XXXXX**

 **A/N: Do you hate me yet? Do ya? Do ya? Do ya? I'll probably revise this if I see any major mistakes, but I think I got everything I wanted. I wanted to make the entire Wave Mission Arc one chapter, but I decided to take my time making a badass fight scene, and dealing with Sakura. Really, the girl shouldn't have even been a shinobi. I have a purpose for everything you saw here. Alright, that's all for now. See you in the next chapter!**


	6. Chapter Three, Of Teams and Trauma

**hrKaeru-sensei does not own Naruto nor does he own RWBY. But dammit Nora's adorable!**

"Regular Speak"

" _Emphasized Speak"_

" _ **Multiple Shouting/Jutsu"**_

" **Bijuu/Demon Speak"**

 _Thoughts/Japanese Words_

 _ **Bijuu/Demon/Inner-Sakura Thoughts**_

 **A/N: Prepare yourself for something so dark… It's Batman… Maybe.**

 **XXXXX**

 **Chapter Three: Of Teams and Trauma**

 **XXXXX**

 **((Play Taiji))**

 **(( watch?time_continue=7 &v=mRRIoCZaUPg))**

 **(Konohagakure, T &I Dept. Reference Center, August 14** **th** **)**

Anko sighed as she sat back with her feet on her desk. She held sheets of papers in her hand and, after brief glances, would toss them into one of many piles in her small office. She hated paperwork as much as the next guy, but unlike Kakashi, she wouldn't skip on it simply because it was inconvenient. She was going over past mental report, and had to separate them into _genin_ , _chunin_ , _Jounin_ , and civilians. ANBU had their own separate pile, as did the occasional annual Hokage mental report. She'd laughed when she found her most recent mental report. Ibiki had described her as 'pleasantly wild on a regular basis', though 'uncharacteristically tame when Kaeru-san is concerned'. Though the part that made her laugh was when he wrote on the side 'READ ME: MAY THREATEN GENITALS OF ANYONE WHO MAKES SEXUAL ADVANCES ON HER'. During that particular session the scarred interrogator had made a few passes at her, and Anko had come extremely close to circumcising him. Completely. She tossed the paper into the _chunin_ pile and glanced at the name of the next one. It was a large stack of papers concerning Kaeru's annual mental checkups. She shrugged and read over the first page.

"Subject appears to be very calm on the exterior, though mind is quite in turmoil…"she read aloud. She grimaced, that had been during the time where they found out Kenkin had been pregnant. Of course he'd have some difficulty with that. She skipped a few pages and found his first _chunin_ report. "Subject seems almost jittery, and his mind is heavily blocked for some reason…?" her eyes narrowed as she read. She skipped a few paragraphs. "Subject has been observed to speak to himself at random moments of the day, though self-conversation has been limited to only a few times this month." She skipped a few more pages to just after the _Kyuubi_ attack on Konoha. "Subject… appears deathly calm, though responds with violence upon questioning of his location during the tragedy." Anko's voice started to shake with disbelief as she read on. "Any attempts to enter the subject's mind is impossible, and most attempts result in the Yamanaka being unable to remember the past few days. By order of the Sandaime Hokage this matter will be addressed in a private meeting. Followup: The subject has been released without difficulty and seems to be withdrawn and quiet. May respond with violence if consistently perturbed." Anko stared at that one paragraph for a few moments before skipping a few pages to a few weeks after she and Kaeru had started dating. Surely he was just depressed, and having her around would cheer him up.

"Subject still resists mental examination with extreme force to a point where he must be tranquilized. Even still, his mind is heavily guarded." Anko flipped immediately to the most recent report. "Subject has become defensive upon questioning. By order of the Sandaime Hokage the subject must report regularly and will be watched within the village constantly by ANBU to determine if the subject is a threat or not." Anko's blood ran cold as she read. Her boyfriend, hiding something? Kaeru had always been a bit secretive, but never to the point described. As far as she knew, anyway. Being his girlfriend, Anko had never been allowed access to his files before, nor to any of his checkups due to her bias towards him. She tossed the file into the _Jounin_ pile and sat back a bit further, her chair balancing on the back two legs. Anko took a deep breath and sighed, closing her eyes. "What the hell are you doing, Kaeru-kun…?"

 **XXXXX**

 **(Kaze no Kuni, Suna no Tomura, August 14** **th** **)**

Usaka Keiko sighed contently as she stood naked aside from an apron in her kitchen. She wriggled her toes on the wooden floor of her quaint, one story sandstone home. While it only had a kitchen, a living room, two bedrooms, and a bathroom; she'd been born and raised here. The eighteen year old girl tossed the pan that she was holding, flipping the scrambled egg into a neat omelet. After a few seconds, she took the spatula beside her stove and slipped it under the breakfast food and neatly depositing it onto a small plate with a slice of buttered toast on it. She took it, as well as an identical plate, and set it on the coffee table in her living room, then went back into the kitchen and poured a glass of orange juice, and a glass of tomato juice. She took the two glasses and placed each one beside a plate, and silently sat down, waiting for her fiancé. She stared at the simple gold band around her finger. While not much, her fiancé had been saving up for that ring for quite a while. He was the catch of the town, and she was lucky enough to have him to herself.

The man was quite exotic, hailing from a different country. While not the most muscled or most ruggedly handsome of the men in her little town, he was definitely the smartest and most beautiful. He had made a few friends during the time between now and when he had first moved in. At first he seemed quite shy. Reclusive almost. It had been Keiko who had opened him up to others. The little blonde with a pixie cut had defiantly demanded that he meet people instead of hanging around the town's only bar. When he questioned her, she did what any self-respecting woman would do. Keiko had grabbed him by the arm and introduced him to her own friends.

Over time, he began to open up to her more than the others. He smiled more often, and while many girls around town had asked him out, it was he who had first asked Keiko on a date!

Keiko blinked as she was drawn from her thoughts by a knock on the door. She slowly got up and put on a jacket before answering. At the door was one of the townsfolk. She didn't remember his name, though.

"Excuse me, is this man in?" he asked, taking out a letter and pointing at the name.

"Ah, yes, he lives here," Keiko responded politely. "Would you like me to deliver it to him?"

"No need," a soft voice emerged from behind her. A single, lightly tanned hand reached past her and grabbed the letter. "Thank you Daisuke-san." The man ripped open the letter and quickly read it. It astounded Keiko how fast he could read. "Tell Nagato-san that I'll keep an eye out. Would he like me to give active chase?"

"That's what he says," Daisuke replied. "You'll be working with a man named Yahiko. He's also ordering everyone around to get together in a little bit in Tanzaku Town. The details are in the seal on the letter."

"I see, thank you Daisuke-san. 'May the Akatsuki rise'."

"'And light the world to peace'," Daisuke responded. With a bow, the man left. Keiko glanced at her husband.

"Breakfast is ready, my dear," she stated. The man nodded, his eyes shut in contemplation. "I don't mind that you have to go. So long as you return in one piece, I will be happy."

"I will return before our child comes," he responded. "Let us have breakfast." He walked with his wife and set the letter face-down on the table. " _Itadakiasu_ (I humbly receive)." Keiko smiled and leaned against her husband. "Mm. I do love you Keiko-hime." The girl giggled and blushed.

"I love you too… Itachi-koi..."

 **XXXXX**

 **((Play Raikiri))**

 **(( watch?v=6MBX-JJblLY))**

 **(Nami no Kuni, Bridge to the Mainland, August 14** **th** **)**

 _"I said I was going to kill you…" Naruto growled. "I swore it on Sakura-chan's blood! I'll kill you!" With a mighty roar of anger, Naruto charged the_ Kirigakure no Kaijin _(Demon of the Hidden Mist)._

"Haku, you can take the kid with shitty hair," Zabuza smirked as he watched the blonde haired _gaki_ charge towards him. He blinked as he saw his real threat, Kaeru, take his target over to the side of the bridge and… read? Zabuza was by no means wanting to fight Kaeru, but seeing the man disregard him completely made his blood boil. "Hey! Pay attention while I beat your brat down!"

" _ **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**_!" Naruto crossed his fingers as four other blonds poofed into existence. Zabuza stared hard at the incoming boys. "You're dead!" Zabuza rolled his eyes and swung his blade around over his head.

"What an idiot," Zabuza grumbled, slashing in a horizontal arc as the clones got close. He smirked as he struck three at once. "You'll have to do better than that-"

" _ **Bunshin Daibakuha**_ **(Great Clone Explosion)**!" the struck clones all shouted at once, immediately exploding in Zabuza's face. Zabuza's eyes widened in shock, though the man melted into water. "Shit! Where did he go!?"

"Not bad kid!" Zabuza yelled from directly behind Naruto, cleaving downward on the boy's head. Naruto quickly swiped to the side, Kubikiribocho slicing into the bridge. "But you're nothing compared to me!" Zabuza kicked Naruto in the chest, forcing him to stumble back, as he pulled his massive blade out of the ground. Acting quickly, Zabuza swung again at Naruto, slashing across the boy's chest. Naruto stumbled back, stunned at the injury. He looked down at his wound, then up at his attacker, only to see the man cleaving down upon him. Naruto fell to his right, narrowly escaping a sliced open skull. As Zabuza and Naruto's game of cat and mouse continued, Sasuke was finding it difficult to keep up with the disguised Hunter Nin.

"Stand still!" Sasuke growled, swiping at where the young protégé once had been standing. He winced as another senbon sunk into his shoulder. He could feel his muscles stiffening. The longer he fought, the weaker he'd become. "Dammit! Stay still so I can hit you!"

"Is this your first serious battle?" the Hunter Nin asked, dodging another thrown kunai. "I see. You should be prepared for either you or your teammate to die. I'm afraid my devotion to my precious person outweighs my pity for you. If it's any consolation, I am truly sorry."

"Shut up!" Sasuke roared, enraged at his inability to land a single strike. "Don't give me your pity and fight me!" He heard the nin sigh.

"Please do not make this harder than it has to be," the nin spoke. "Surrender, and I will only set you into a death-like trance. I take no pleasure in killing others." Throwing another senbon, she struck him close to the spine.

"Sasuke!" Naruto shouted out, seeing his friend collapse. He grunted as he was forced to jump back from another horizontal swing by Zabuza.

"Pay attention to me _gaki_!" Zabuza growled. Zabuza went through a quick line of hand seals and inhaled. " _ **Suiton: Ame Buredo no Jutsu**_ **(Water Release: Raining Blades Technique)**!" Zabuza pulled down his mask, giving Naruto a brief look at his mouth before spitting out multiple shots of water at the boy. Naruto was quick on his feet, if not extremely clumsy, and avoided each shot. The blasts of water, when they struck ground, created dents, cracks, and slices into the concrete bridge. Naruto's eyes widened as he took in the damage. " _ **Suiton: Kamikiri**_ **(Water Release: Divine Waters)**!" Naruto's eyes snapped back to his opponent as Zabuza finished the final handseal. Zabuza inhaled deeply and let out a torrent of water from his mouth which spiraled toward the blond _genin_. Naruto let out a cry of shock as he was struck by the forceful attack. Zabuza let out a disgruntled noise. "Not bad _gaki_ , but a fresh _genin_ can't even touch me." Zabuza's eyes widened as 'Naruto' puffed into a cloud of smoke.

" _ **Taju Kage Bunshin no Jutsu**_ **(Multiple Shadow Clone Technique)**!" Naruto shouted from behind the man. Zabuza swung his blade as he spun around, but it was too late. He felt Kubikiribocho be kicked out of his hand, and his eyes widened with a hint of worry as he saw thousands upon thousands of _**Kage Bunshin**_ glaring at him. Some with kunai, some without, but all of them with the same, hateful glare. Sure, Zabuza had taken on large groups of people before, but this? The hardened Kiri _nukenin_ (Missing Ninja) felt his heartbeat quicken. A single blond stood in front of the rest, his foot on top of Zabuza's favorite blade. It was moments like this that made Zabuza wish he'd carried around another sword, or some kunai.

"Well shit," Zabuza muttered. He turned to his partner. "Haku, stop messing with that brat and help me!" The young woman paused and glanced at him, nodding.

"I am sorry…" Sasuke heard the girl speak. The boy was on his knees before her. At her mercy. And he hated it. "But my master calls for me… Please do not take this personally, Sasuke-kun… But this is the life of a ninja… _**Hijutsu**_ …" A single panel of ice formed behind Haku, in which she stepped back into. Suddenly, mirrors began forming in a dome around the boy. " _ **Makyo Hyosho**_ **(Secret Art: Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals)**!" Sasuke saw her vanish. He at first mistook it as teleportation, but his _**Sharingan**_ saw otherwise. It was speed. Pure, untouchable speed. Sasuke couldn't move, too in awe of his opponent.

 _This is… beautiful…_ was his final thought before darkness overtook him. Haku's ice disappeared from around the boy. Even though she'd only knocked him out, her heart ached. To see the love interest of her newest, closest, and only friend out for the count, and by her hands no less, pained her. She took a moment to glare at the man leaning against the side of the bridge, reading. It was as if he had no care for the children under his command. Even Zabuza would come to take care of her wounds if she were injured. This man… she shook those thoughts from her head and dashed towards her master, who was currently drowning in a sea of blond. Haku took a deep breath, forming the moisture in the air around her into senbon shaped ice, creating and launching them rapidly into the golden sea. She was satisfied as she heard hundreds of 'pops', leaving only a handful of the boys.

"I have come, Zabuza-sama," Haku let her presence be known. Zabuza grunted.

"About damn time, girl," he grumbled. "You took your time, didn't you?" Haku bowed.

"My apologies, Zabuza-sama," she spoke softly. Her heart thumped, unsure of whether she wanted his punishment, or not. "I… I will not make such a mistake again."

"Sasuke…" she heard the blond mutter. She looked up, seeing the boy staring at his fallen teammate. He turned to her and glared. " _What did you do!?_ "

"Was he your friend as well?" Haku asked, her heart falling in her chest. "I am sorry… I-"

"Enough talking, Haku. We got a brat to kill," Zabuza punched a fist into his open palm. "You _did_ kill the other runt, right?" Haku decided it was best to stay silent. "Whatever. This kid's already cowering. Just put him out of his misery."

"You killed… my teammate…" Naruto growled, his fists clenched. Hate. That was what he was feeling. Hatred. These two had hurt his teammates. His comrades. His _friends_! "You crippled Sakura-chan…"

 **((Play Bad Situation))**

 **(( watch?v=E8oFiJgsyEc))**

Zabuza's eyes widened as he felt the boy's chakra spike. Intense dread began to fill him for some reason. _**"I'LL KILL YOU!"**_ First, he was there. The next, Haku felt something hit her, knocking her across the bridge. _**"YOU'LL PAY FOR HURTING THEM!"**_ Haku tried to righten herself, as soon as she skidded on the ground, but felt herself become smashed into the concrete. The air left her lungs, and tears welled up in her eyes.

 _This is the life of a ninja…_ she tried to tell herself. _I am but a tool for Zabuza-sama to use… I will proudly die for him…_ Her eyes squeezed shut as she heard her master yell in pain. Another tremor. _Please… hurt me instead!_ Another yell. _Focus on me! Leave Zabuza-sama alone!_

" _Haku!_ " Zabuza yelled. He was close. She felt him pick her up and steady her on her feet. "We're out of here, Haku. The money isn't worth it."

"Wha…" she spoke in a low, dazed whisper as she saw the boy. His eyes were red, and his whisker marks on his cheeks, which she thought looked cute before, were now jagged and prominent. She could see a foul, venomous chakra seeping from his pores, almost like an evil aura. "What is he…?"

"Well, what's this?" spoke a relatively small man. He was obviously aged, judging from his wrinkles. He wore dark shades that hid his eyes and an expensive business suit, making him seem detached and inhuman. "The great _Kirigakure no Kaijin_ getting his ass whooped by a child? Maybe I should have hired the _gaki_ instead!" The blond payed the new arrival no heed until his sensei spoke up.

"Naruto!" Kaeru called, making him turn to face the man. "That man, Gato, hired these two to hurt us. He's the reason why Sakura's so hurt!" Like a switch, Naruto's focus was on Gato. The man took a step back, obviously realizing he was being threatened.

"M-Men!" Gato called to the shadows in the mist behind him. Looking closely, one could make out an army of mercenaries. "Go kill them all and I'll pay you double!" Naruto snarled and charged towards the men before they could even move.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Nami no Kuni, Tazuna's House, August 14** **th** **)**

" _N-No!" she cried, tears pooling up in her eyes. "Please st-stop!" She screamed loudly as she felt that… thing press against her. "NO! PLEASE KAMI PLEASE DON'T DO THIS! I'LL DO ANYTHING!" In desperation, Sakura took a deep breath and began her one handed seals. "_ **Suiton: Suidan no** _ **-**_ _" her jutsu was interrupted as the man grabbed her hand and crushed it in his own. "_ ITAAAAAIIII _!"_

 _"RAAAAAAAH!" the man howled with excitement as Sakura became impure._

Sakura wept as she felt her virginity stripped away from her, unable to comprehend anything but pain and shame. She tried her best to block out the lewd sounds coming from the brute. She tried her best to block out the increasing feeling of pleasure running through her traitorous body. She tried to stifle the small gasps and moans welling up inside of her. And she was failing. The world faded away from her. Her mind became detached from what she was feeling. Darkness overtook her vision. Instead of the ugly mug of her attacker, she found herself staring at… herself.

 _ **Are you just gonna give up!?**_ The mirror version of Sakura yelled. Sakura blinked, trying to figure out why she was getting yelled at by herself. _**Kaeru-sensei has been working so hard to train us, and you're just gonna let this creep make you throw all of that away!?**_

"B-But it hurts… He… He… I can't be a wife anymore…" Sakura cried.

 _ **Shut up and get your ass in gear!**_ Her mirror commanded.

"But… I can't do anything…" Sakura whimpered. Her mirror growled.

 _ **Fine! But I'm only bailing you out this once!**_

Kuro smirked as the little girl passed out. He was close, and was gonna enjoy watching his seed flow from those tight little lips of her. He held back a laugh as the little slut woke up and looked around. "You ready bitch?" he taunted her. He should have thought something was off when the girl only stared at him and narrowed her eyes. But he was so close he couldn't think straight.

 _ **"SHANNARO!"**_ Kuro watched as the girl drew her head back and flung it forward. He heard a cracking sound, and everything went dark.

Sakura winced as she pulled herself off of the dead man's… thing… She shivered and took a deep breath, remembering about the other man. Sakura quickly grabbed the kunai from under her pillow and ran downstairs.

"No! Please don't! I'll get pregnant!"

"Mommy!"

"Shut up you little slut!" Sakura heard a slapping sound and arrived in the kitchen just in time to see… the man… no, the monster, pump the kind mother with his seed. "Fuck yeah!"

"NO!" Tsunami cried. Sakura growled and her hand tightened around the kunai. She ran forward at the monster from behind and plunged the blade into its neck. The thing dropped dead, and Tsunami quickly squirmed away from it, sobbing. Sakura stared at the blood on her hands and felt her heart plummet. She'd killed someone… She'd lost her virginity… she'd let her client's daughter get raped… Tears fell from the pink haired girl's cheeks. She'd killed a man and enjoyed it… Did that make her a monster too? "S-Sakura-chan…" Tsunami mumbled, wrapping her arms around the girl. She took the kunai shakily, and cut her son loose. "G-Get help… Inari…" The stricken boy nodded slowly and ran from the house. The two woman held each other, crying for their losses.

 **XXXXX**

 **((Play Loneliness))**

 **(( watch?v=Q_7a0bexfmI))**

 **(Road to Konohagakure, August 20** **th** **)**

Kaeru ushered his students down the road. Everything was silent. After killing Gato, Naruto had broken down. He couldn't come to grips with killing. He was shaken, and would always wash his hands frantically. Sasuke had been angry. The girl he'd fought with outmatched him in every way. And even though the two had 'made up' at Tazuna's house later, he was still pissed at his own weakness. Thinking of the girl, he rubbed his right cheek, right over the spot Haku had kissed before they had parted ways. Sakura was broken. She'd told Kaeru what had happened, and he was ashamed. He never expected such a thing to happen. He found that he couldn't fall asleep at night, and evident bags hung under his eyes. Zabuza had offered to take his shift building the bridge, but Kaeru adamantly refused. He had found that Sakura wouldn't let anyone touch her, not even Sasuke. The only person who made any progress was Naruto, but she'd only let him rub her head. Recently she'd started laying on his lap, but it took a long time for her to work up the willpower to. Any shifting, though, would make her shriek and move away from Naruto with haste. And it hurt. Naruto was in pain, because he needed someone to help him realize that he had killed righteously. That the death on his hands had saved hundreds, perhaps thousands. Sakura needed someone to hold onto that wouldn't judge her. Who wouldn't blame her for defiled. And yet she was instinctively trying to distance herself from the very boy who could help her, and needed her help.

The time came when they had to pull over to the side of the road and make camp. Kaeru decided to set up camp himself, and let his students rest. On the exterior, he was the epitome of calm. Inside, however, his feelings were much more jumbled. He remembered the glare the young woman, Haku, had given him before they parted. The hate filled words she had given him.

" _You don't care about them,"_ she had accused. _"They fight your battles. They experience pains no one should have to face. And you sit back and let them. You are not a shinobi. You are a monster."_ At the moment Kaeru had scoffed and played them off. But his conscious wouldn't let him forget those words. Because he knew she was right. As he laid out in the starlight for the night, he found himself drifting off back into that mysterious, white void. He sighed and grunted.

"I'm not in the mood, Kai," Kaeru snarled. The old man appeared once again, a light, knowing smirk plastered on his face. "Show me what you want me to see and let me sleep."

"Ah, you know me all too well, my friend," Kai chuckled. "Do you see what your actions have wrought? How this power has gone to your head?"

"I made a few mistakes, that's all," Kaeru defended himself. "Team Seven doesn't need Sakura. She could always be replaced. Sasuke has the _**Sharingan**_ , and Naruto has used the _Kyuubi's_ chakra. Things are still close enough to make them heroes."

"And what of Momochi?" Kai questioned. "I can assure you that Kiri is quite similar without 'Tobi'. And yet very different. Allowing Zabuza to live may bite you in the arse later on." Kaeru's eyes narrowed.

"What's different with Kiri?" he asked. Kai shook his head.

"Ah, you'll find out later, I'm sure. Or maybe not. But anyways, for what I have to show you. It seems your presence has opened up some… very interesting similarities."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll see. I know you will. But shall we say…" Kai paused dramatically, "you'll be coming across some very familiar faces in your future. My actions might have accidentally ripped a hole in the fabric of reality!" Kai laughed heartily at this. "Ah, I'll be going to hell for a few years for that. But enjoy. I hope you meet them. They'll make things much more interesting for you!" Kaeru growled as Kai faded from view, and several different people appeared. They were static, unmoving, but Kaeru knew exactly who they were. His plan was beginning to gain more and more to it.

 **XXXXX**

 _ **(Konohagakure, Academy Playground, Unknown Time)**_

 _Sakura found herself sitting on the swings of Konohagakure. She looked around, confused. Hadn't she just been on a mission? Yes, and she had been sharing a tent with Naruto and Sasuke. They'd been on the way home. So how did she end up here? Sakura stood, and slowly wandered the grounds, finding she couldn't move past the playground's fences. She could see people arriving as the sun was in the midday sky._

 _"Excuse me," she tried to speak to a parent and reached for the woman, but her hand passed through them. "E-Eh? What's going on?"_

 _"Hah! Look at the size of her forehead!"_

 _Sakura turned to look at where the voice had come from, her left hand reaching up to cover her forehead. She gasped at what she saw. A few boys were picking on a younger her. Sakura's eyes widened as she watched her younger self start to bawl._

 _"What a freak!" one of the boys laughed._

 _"Yeah, who'd ever want to play with someone as ugly as you!?" another jeered._

 _"Not me! I don't wanna get a big forehead!" Sakura felt tears well up in her eyes. Even though it wasn't really her, the comments stung. She didn't remember this day. It must have been before Ino had stood up for her. Sakura's heart sank. She… she really had lost her only friend that moment. Or so she thought._

 _"Hey!" a familiar voice shouted. She turned and saw a young Naruto stomping over towards the boys. "You stop making her cry right now!" The first boy, who was probably the oldest, rolled his eyes and stood intimidatingly over the now recently arrived blond. The young Sakura's face seemed to be confused at the boy trying to defend her._

 _"Oh yeah?" the first boy spoke arrogantly. "What's a shrimp like you gonna do about it?" Naruto growled and seemed to pounce on the bigger kid, almost like a dog. "Ow! Hey! Get off,_ teme _, that hurts!"_

 _"You apologize to this girl right now!" Naruto shouted, shaking the boy's head. Sakura couldn't help but laugh at how weird Naruto was. Her heart soared knowing that she was being defended, even if it was Naruto doing it._

 _"L-Like I'll ever do anything you say, fishcake!" the boy managed. Naruto's shaking suddenly stopped. Sakura noticed his grip tighten on the boy's shirt. "Heh, yeah! You better stop! My brother's a_ genin _! If you do anything I'll just get him to-"_

 _"Fishcake…" Naruto growled. He raised a single fist in the air. "I'LL SHOW YOU A FISHCAKE!" Before Naruto could pummel the kid's face in, which Sakura would have enjoyed, the younger Sakura grabbed Naruto's hand._

 _"Wait!" the young girl cried out. "Don't hurt him! I'm not worth hurting anyone over…" Naruto seemed to contemplate over this before he got off the kid and brought the boy up with him._

 _"You better leave this girl alone or I'll make you regret it!" Naruto growled, than shoved the kid away._

 _"W-Whatever! You're both a bunch of freaks!" the kid tried to redeem himself. "C-C'mon guys! Let's get away from these losers!" Sakura smiled ad Naruto crossed his arms, ready to make chase, but her younger self held the blond back._

 _"Thanks…" younger Sakura mumbled. Naruto grinned widely and nodded._

 _"Yeah, of course! I'm Uzumaki Naruto! Nice to meetcha!"_

 _"Haruno…_ Ano _(Um)… Haruno Sakura…"_

 _"Nice to meetcha Sakura-chan! Wanna be friends?" Younger Sakura's eyes lit up._

 _"E-Eh? Friends?" Naruto nodded at her question. "_ H-Hai _!" Unbeknownst to her, outside of the dream, Sakura had snuggled closer to the blond boy known as Uzumaki Naruto in her sleep, a content smile on her face._

 **XXXXX**

 **((Play Afternoon in Konoha))**

 **(( watch?v=We60ZX5C99I))**

 **(Konohagakure, Akamichi Barbeque, August 29th** **th** **)**

"Can you believe _Dekorin_ (Forehead Girl) actually moved in with _Naruto_ of all people?" Ino asked her teammates. While Shikamaru's eyes widened a bit with interest, but otherwise just kept eating at a slow pace. Choji was the exact opposite, so focused on his food that he didn't hear the blonde girl. Asuma was simply watching the 'big boned' _genin_ , feeling the ryo siphoning out of his pockets with an exhausted expression. If his clan didn't have such large vaults, and he wasn't well to do from his time as one of the _Shugonin Junishi_ (Twelve Gentlemen Guardian Ninja), he'd actually be worried about being tapped out of money. "Are you guys even listening to me!?"

"Will you stop being so loud?" Shikamaru sighed, giving his teammate a relaxed glare. "It's bad enough that you yell at us on missions. Can't you at least let us eat in peace?" He sighed. "Troublesome woman… Can't be quiet…"

"Guys, this is a big deal! With _Dekorin_ out of the way, I'm one step closer to claiming Sasuke-kun as mine!" Shikamaru swore he could see Ino's eyes replaced with hearts.

"Not likely," Shikamaru disagreed, ending Ino's fantasy. "Sasuke seems to be getting more distant. He looks to the east a lot and has been joining me on my cloud watching. Quite the conversationalist."

"Yeah!" Choji let his presence be known between mouthfuls of food. "Last time, he told us all about this A-rank mission his team went on!" Ino eagerly hung onto his words as Choji shoved another rack of ribs into his mouth, wiping the meat off the bones with ease. "He said he met some girl who was stronger than him and he wanted to fight again. It sounded like he was really interested in her." Ino deflated onto the table.

"Oi, Naruto-kun, Sakura-kun," Asuma spoke up, waving to the two youth at the door. Naruto was dressed in orange cargo shorts and a black shirt with a red spiral on the back, something he'd begun wearing more often since Sakura had moved into his place. While her parents weren't thrilled with the move, the doctor had told them that the only person she was interacting normally with was Naruto. At that, her father had joked that he'd be swimming with grandchildren soon enough. He'd stopped quickly though on noticing his daughter tense. They accepted quickly enough that they wouldn't be much help.

Asuma noticed that Sakura was freezing, though with some whispered words from Naruto, she began meekly making her way to Team Ten's table. Her eyes, however, landed on Ino.

"Ino- _buta_ (Ino-pig)…" Sakura seemed to whisper, though a light smile could be seen on her cheeks. "It's been a while." Ino seemed to come to an understanding once she saw Sakura. A light, friendly smile adorned her face.

" _Dekorin_ " Ino returned the jab. "I'm surprised you're both so close. What happened to Sasuke-kun?" Sakura looked down and Naruto frowned.

"Sasuke-teme's been training with Kaeru-sensei," Naruto spoke. It was obvious he wasn't happy with Sasuke's decision. "So Sakura-chan and I have been going around trying to get her to be open and friendly again." Sakura lightly slapped the blond's shoulder, laughing lightly.

"Shush, Naruto," Sakura shook her head tiredly. "I'm perfectly friendly. I just need to remind myself that guys aren't… won't… you know…"

"You got caught in a bad situation," Shikamaru spoke up. "What happened wasn't your fault, and probably won't ever happen again."

"But what if it-" Sakura tried to protest, but Shikamaru's intense stare stopped her.

"It won't happen again," he said with finality. "You have Naruto with you. And us. And Team Six, too. We might not see each other as much as you and Naruto, but we're your comrades. Nobody was there to protect you that day, and that's your sensei's fault. Now you're being protected by your friends and family. You're not a shinobi, so you'll more than likely be staying in the village. You'll be completely safe." Shikamaru paused to eat a slice of pork. "It won't happen again." Ino gave Shikamaru a sly smile and rubbed her chin.

"Wow, Shikamaru. You should be a counselor or a therapist," she complimented. Shikamaru grunted.

"I'd rather not," he replied, closing his eyes as he ate. "Listening to other's problems day in and day out would be such a drag. I'll stick with being a ninja."

"Say kids," Asuma spoke up, "Since you're both out on the town, how about I treat you? You both look like you could use a good meal."

"Yeah, that sounds great! Thanks… Uh…" Naruto's voice trailed off as his cheeky grin slowly slipped. Asuma sighed and slapped his palm against his face.

"What a moron…" Ino muttered.

"That's just Naruto for you," Shikamaru replied.

 **XXXXX**

 **((Play Evening))**

 **(( watch?v=Qv7btgqaAGc))**

 **(Konohagakure, Naruto's Apartment, Later That Night)**

"Boy, that hit the spot!" Naruto stretched as he entered his apartment, kicking his sandals off on the porch, making Sakura smile. She did the same, and entered the single room apartment. She glanced at her clothes all lined up neatly in the new drawer across form the doorway and walked over to it, picking out her outfit for the next day. Naruto did the same with his drawer along the right side wall. It had been a habit Sakura had ingrained into him. Before, the apartment had been a pigsty. After a few days of cleaning, Sakura had deemed it livable. She shuddered at the thought of that… whatever that had been staring out from under the bed. "Oi, Sakura-chan, I'm taking first shower tonight," Naruto announced, carrying in his pajamas into the bathroom.

"Ok," Sakura nodded, finishing her clothing setup for the next day. She heard the shower curtains close and she rolled her eyes, closing the door to the shower halfway. The door opened into the open room, with the other side of it facing the back wall. It would be extremely obvious if she had wanted to peek in, not that she would. "Naruto?"

"What's up, Sakura-chan?" Naruto called from the bathroom as she heard water start to run.

"I'm thinking of looking for a job," she yelled loud enough for her roommate to hear. She wandered off into the kitchen/dining room beside the main room, filling a cup full of tap water.

"What kind of job?" Naruto yelled back. Sakura started to water the plants as she thought for a moment.

"I don't know… maybe you could help me look around a bit." She suggested. Naruto was quiet for a moment. "Naruto?"

"Hey Sakura-chan?" Naruto's voice came back a bit unsure as she finished watering. "Do you think we act like a couple?" Sakura froze and felt her grip on the glass loosen, but she quickly caught herself before it dropped from her hands.

" _A-A-A couple_!?" Sakura yelled. " _Wha-Wherever could you have gotten th-that idea_!?"

"Well, Asuma-sensei seemed to be talking to himself earlier," Naruto responded. "I didn't hear all of it, but I heard him say we were almost like a couple." Sakura sat on the bed as she heard the water stop. She was quiet and staring at the floor when she felt Naruto touch her shoulder, making her flinch. "S-Sorry…" he whispered.

"It's ok…" Sakura sighed, feeling her heartbeat skyrocket at the touch. "I'm… I'll got take a shower now."

"Yeah…" Naruto watched as Sakura took up a change of clothes, new pajamas, and went into the bathroom. He stared at her, a frown on his face. This was all he'd ever wanted. Sakura not hating him, living with someone who liked him… So why did he still feel so empty? Why did it feel like… he hadn't achieved all that much? In his mind flashed the image of a naked Sakura curled up with Tsunami, crying. He shut his eyes and grimaced. The image wouldn't go away!

In the shower, Sakura sat down against the wall and let the water cascade over her body. She let the tears fall freely, scrubbing as hard as she could. But no matter what, the dirtiness still was there. She couldn't get rid of it. It was a stain on her, and no matter what she did… She'd never be able to give her first time to the boy she loved. She'd never have a pure marriage. She'd never be able to forget her first time, not matter how hard she tried. And it terrified her. It took her a while to gather up the energy to wash herself as well as she could and turn the water off. She didn't want to burden Naruto with such a high water bill while she couldn't pay for rent herself. Slowly, she dried herself and got changed, turning off the light and entering the dark main room. She walked over to the bed and laid down, snuggling under the blankets. Two strong arms wrapped around her stomach, and a warm, gentle body held her from behind.

"Goodnight, Sakura-chan," Naruto whispered.

"Goodnight Naruto," she whispered back. That night like every other when she slept around Naruto, she dreamt of their first meeting.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, The Bent Shuriken, September 6** **th** **)**

 **((Play This))**

 **(( watch?v=W8Cy9Y3mqcc))**

Sakura stood nervously on stage, nearly frozen as the music began to play. Her body felt exposed in front of so many customers. She looked around, looking for the familiar splotch of sunshine blond hair that had promised to be there. So far, nothing. Maybe they wouldn't let her in? Could she perform in front of so many people without knowing he was there? What if she froze up? What if they tried to touch her? What if they wanted more from her than she wanted to give!? Where was Naruto!?

"Go get 'em Sakura-chan!" a lone voice called from the crowd. There! There he was! And the rest of Team Seven! And Ino! And her parents! They were smiling at her. Sakura's heartbeat began to relax. They came! They were supporting her! "You can do it!"

"Don't screw up _Dekorin!_ "

"That's my baby girl!" Sakura smiled and took a deep breath.

" _Mou osoi kara kaette oide_

 _Nemui no nara kisu wo shite "oyasumi"_

 _Toumei na yakusoku tachi mirai wo atsumete_

 _Azayakana iro ni someyou_

 _Itsuka moshimo omoide ni natte mo_

 _Machigai janai yo ne?_

 _Zutto kono hi no mama de_

 _Odayakana egao dake mite itai_

 _Kimi to futari de ireba_

 _Shiawase ninare souna kiga suru yo kitto_

 _"Aishiteru" wa oogesa dakara_

 _"Arigatou" wo hako ni ire okuru yo_

 _Toozakaru kanashimi tachi te wo furi owakare_

 _Konya kara tsuyoku nareru ne_

 _Jibun mamoru tame ni tsuita uso_

 _Iranai ne suteyou_

Sakura began to smile, staring straight at Naruto as she sang. She began to let herself relax, and sing only to him from the depths of her heart, thanking him for all he'd done.

 _Zutto issho ni iyou_

 _Eien ga nai koto wa shitteru kedo_

 _Gogo no hizashi no naka wa_

 _Shiawase ga afurete yume mitai ne chotto_

 _Zutto hanasanai de ne_

 _Zeitaku na onegai to omou kedo_

 _Kimi to futari de ireba_

 _Shiawase ninare souna kiga suru yo motto_

 _Kamisama ni onegai me wo tojiru yo sotto_." **(1)** Sakura lightly smiled and bowed as the music came to a close, many of the patrons of the bar clapping for her. Sakura laughed, feeling her heart beating fast. She went through the back hallways and emerged from a 'staff only' door near her friend.

"That was awesome, Sakura-chan!" Naruto cheered for her.

"My little girl is so grown up!" her father complimented her. "First she moves out and now she's got a job! Ohohoh I'm gonna miss our little girl!"

"T-Tou-chan~" Sakura whined, "you're embarrassing me!"

"Oh, you know your tou-chan means well, Sakura-chan," her mother chided. "Though Kizashi-kun, you should know better." She slapped her husband's back. "We're very proud of you sweetie."

"Not bad, _Dekorin_ ," Ino complimented. "I gotta admit, you look good up there."

"Thanks..." Sakura blushed a bit and smiled.

"Hn, I've heard worse," Sasuke said with a smug smile. It was obvious he meant it as a compliment.

"Maa, maa, Sasuke-kun," Kaeru chuckled. "Your comrade is doing quite well. You should be happy." He nodded. "Well, we have training to do. Naruto-kun, why don't you take Sakura-chan home? I'm sure she'd like to rest before she puts on tonight's show."

"H-Hai," Sakura agreed. "I'd like a rest." Naruto smiled and grabbed the girl's arm, pulling her out from the restaurant. As they walked towards their apartment, however, they heard a commotion.

"Hey, _gaki_ , watch where you're going!"

"Put me down you big jerk!" Naruto ran towards the sound of trouble, Sakura following not far behind. They rounded a corner of fences to see some guy with makeup and in a really bad cat costume holding up a small child by his shirt. Two other kids stood off to the side, worried looks on their faces. Behind the cat-guy with a tall blonde with four ponytails.

"Not until you apologize for running into me!" the cat guy growled.

"We were just playing around!" the boy shouted.

"C'mon, Kankuro, we should go before someone hears…" the girl tried to get her friend to leave.

"Hmph, maybe I should teach this brat a lesson first," Kankuro grumbled, pulling something wrapped in bandages off his back. Naruto had seen enough.

"Hey you!" Naruto stormed up to Kankuro. "What are you doing to Konohamaru!?"

"Boss!" Konohamaru shouted excitedly. "Oh yeah, you're in for it now! Naruto-nii's gonna totally kick your ass!"

"This shrimp?" the girl behind Kankuro stifled her laugher. This little boy didn't look like all that much. Though he held himself pretty well. It wasn't atrocious anyway. She was sure if Kankuro attacked, than the blond kid would be able to get away easily. The girl behind him, however…

"Don't make fun of Naruto!" Sakura yelled at the blonde, suddenly feeling defensive of the boy who'd helped her so much.

"Or what, little girl?" the blonde girl smirked as Sakura shrank back a bit. "You aren't a ninja, are you? Oh, and look at that arm! Or lack of. You got injured, didn't you? You probably cut yourself and they had to saw the entire thing off with how mangled it was."

"For your information, she lost it in a fight with Momochi Zabuza," Naruto grwled, making the two intruders freeze. This girl had fought an A-rank _nukenin_ and survived? Kankuro felt a bit of sweat drip down his forehead.

"Dammit, Kankuro, I knew this was a bad idea! Put the brat down!"

"Shut it, Temari! You wanted to beat up the shrimp just as much as I did!"

"Both of you, shut up," a voice came from a nearby tree. Hanging upside-down on an overhanging branch was a boy with rust colored hair, and dark circles around his eyes. He had a pale complexion and a gaze that made you want to curl up in a corner. "You're embarrassing our village."

"S-Sorry Gaara…" Kankuro apologized, fear laced in his voice.

"Hey, what are two foreign shinobi doing in our village, huh?" Naruto asked, noticing their _hitai-ate_ (Forehead Protectors). Temari looked at him as if he were stupid.

"The _Chunin_ Exams, duh," she spoke indignantly.

"O-Oh yeah…" Naruto remembered that Kaeru had signed both him and Sasuke up for the exams a week before.

"Temari, shut up or I'll kill you," Gaara spoke again. He glared at Naruto. "You… You aren't weak…" A nasty grin appeared on Gaara's face. "I look forward to crushing you…" Naruto froze as he heard those words. "Come on. Let's go." Gaara left, with both Kankuro and Temari in tow.

 **XXXXX**

 **Omake: The Hyuuga Family**

 **(Konohagakure, Hyuuga Compound, September 13** **th** **)**

"The _Chunin_ Exams will be taking place tomorrow," Hizashi spoke to his brother and his younger sister. "I hear your daughter has been recommended." They proceeded to walk through the corridors of the estate to the training dojo. "I hope you know, my son has also been recommended by his sensei."

"I know," Hiashi replied. "I have no doubt, though, that my daughter has the potential to defeat your son." Mizuna smiled as her husband took part in friendly banter with her brother. While she couldn't always be with her daughters, she always did what she could to ensure that Hiashi was a loving father. Even if he was quite the micromanager.

"My son is the child of two prodigies," Hizashi replied. "Your daughter is the child of… Well, her father is not quite impressive like her uncle." Hiashi rolled his eyes as they entered the dojo, seeing both Hinata and Neji sparring one another. "Neji-kun." The spar ended and Neji turned to his father.

"Otou-sama," he came over and bowed to his father, than turned to his uncle. "Hyuuga-sama."

"Isn't it best to address the clan head first, Neji-san?" Hiashi chided with an amused smile.

"Apologies, Hyuuga-sama," Neji replied. "I will be more vigilant on the matter."

"No matter, I wish you luck during the _Chunin_ Exams," Hiashi spoke. "Both of you. Bring honor to our name."

"Hai, otou-sama," Hinata bowed meekly.

"Come. We have dinner soon," Hiashi commanded. Both his wife and daughter left with him.

"Will Kaeru-jichan be visiting soon?" Neji asked curiously after the three others had left. Hizashi shook his head.

"He has a team of his own to train, Neji-kun," the man stated. "But I'm certain you'll see him sometime during the exams."

"I see…" Neji spoke disappointedly. "I will be heading to my room early tonight. Goodnight, otou-sama."

"Goodnight, Neji-kun. I look forward to your performance."

 **XXXXX**

 **A/N: Damn, did I hit a writer's block with this one. I hate fight scenes because I love writing day-to-day life. I hope I didn't mess up too much on this fight, but I wanted it to be semi-realistic, and wanted to give Zabuza more than just his sword. Kaeru seems to have quite the agenda, and who did he see that he's so interested in? Find out sometime whenever I feel like in Redemption is Troublesome!**

 **The song is Kono Hi No Mama De by NaNa**


	7. Chapter Four: The Chunin Exams Part 1

**TheKaiSenpai doesn't own Naruto but he does own this piece of chocolate. Correction,** _ **did**_ **.**

"Regular Speak"

" _Emphasized Speak"_

" _ **Multiple Shouting/Jutsu"**_

" **Bijuu/Demon Speak"**

 _Thoughts/Japanese Words_

 _ **Bijuu/Demon/Inner-Sakura Thoughts**_

 **A/N: I'd like to thank all the folks who're following this story: Beegee2014, Boomerpyro, CcsAssassin, Clinpipe, DarkDust27, Darkjaden, DocBrown13, Ebony sword, Flaming Kiwi, GLaDOS-01, Gashadokuro Amanojaku, Magister Wolfram, MaidMaliya, Morrigan's lover, NamelessOne0, NekoFace, Oban-chan, Ocastle102, Redeemer9855, Ryol, Sai Hikawa, Shadowarrior13, SlayerInfinium, Talkingbirdguy, TonyRexton, Wonkie, Yeltin, animefreak2221396, campiongirl16, catsandanimeandmanga, chi4ngo, chippermovie, cv snowblind, danadue, fanfiction2010, halata34, harrypotter9398, .9, mishuu, moonlight, moops, oddject, puppy13, raio10, saayeen006, setsunaxx, sgolek1, spiritual fighter, tsukiyomi83, waraa, zangoules**

 **XXXXX**

 **Chapter Four: The Chunin Exams Part 1**

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Academy Building, September 14** **th** **)**

Both Naruto and Sasuke stood in front of the Shinobi Academy, Sakura grasping onto Naruto's right arm with her left. They watched as several exam attendees entered the building. While Sasuke's face was impassive and distant, Naruto's was filled with excitement. Sakura's expression, though, shot worried glanced to her blond friend. She hugged his arm closer, drawing his attention.

"Eh?" Naruto muttered, "What's up Sakura-chan?" The girl was silent for a moment, simply staring down into the blond boy's eyes. He saw her worry easily. "H-Hey, we'll be alright!" he reassured her. Sakura's worried stare didn't lighten up at all.

"My tou-chan said people could die in these exams…" she mumbled, bending over and kissing his cheek. "Just… come back to me in one piece with your heart still beating…" The pink haired girl reached under Naruto's orange jacket and black shirt and rested her hand over his heart. The three were silent for a moment, with Naruto's face a bright red, and a light dusting of pink adorning Sakura's cheeks. "Well… go get 'em foxy." Sakura smiled kindly and lightly punched the blond's shoulder. Naruto paused a moment but nodded. Only a few steps forward, Naruto's arm suddenly was held once again.

"Sakura-chan?"

"I… I ca come with you until the actual exam, I'm sure," Sakura excused. Sasuke sighed and went on ahead, leaving Naruto to pull along Sakura with him. They went up past a group of _genin_ arguing about a genjutsu covered doorway on the way up the stairs, and was about to head up the next flight when they were stopped.

"You!" an energetic voice called from behind the three friends. They all turned around to see a… assumedly boy standing before them. He was dressed in forest green spandex, with bright orange legwarmers and brows the size of watermelon slices. His hair was cut in a bob and looked shiny. Too shiny. Sakura automatically knew the boy was wearing _way_ too much of… something in his hair. "Are you the one known as Uchiha Sasuke?"

"So what if I am," Sasuke replied, not really interested in the weirdo before him. "Who are you? And how do you know my name?" **(1)**

"What a weirdo, right Sakura-chan?" Naruto leaned over and asked his friend.

"My name is Lee Rock, and I have come to fight you, the Rookie of the Year," Lee announced. "As last year's _dobe_ (Dead Last), I wish to see who is stronger!" Then, Lee's eyes wandered over to Sakura. "Ah, such a delicate beauty! Surely, this young blossom's heart is full of youth and vigor!"

"W-W-What?" Sakura stammered, slightly horrified at the thought of the boy trying to flirt with her.

"I see, I must win you over by defeating my strongest opposition!" Lee decided. "Uchiha Sasuke, I plead that you fight me!" Sasuke smirked and pushed past his friends.

"With pleasure. This will be too easy," Sasuke replied, following after the exuberant spandex wearing boy. Naruto glanced at Sakura before they both shrugged and followed the Uchiha boy. They arrived at a small indoor training area, where Sasuke and Lee were already fighting. It was so one-sided that it wasn't even funny. Sasuke was launched into the air and kicked down with enough force to shatter the hardwood floor.

"Poor Sasuke…" Sakura muttered. "That looks like it hurt…" Sasuke was hardly getting back up, and was stumbling. Lee turned to his audience and gave them a thumbs up, focusing on Sakura.

"I have defeated your class's strongest student! I ask of you, young maiden, will you go on a date with me?" Lee gave her a wide grin, his teeth actually sparkling. Sakura cringed and held onto Naruto's right arm more tightly, causing the boy to focus on Naruto instead. "I see, another rival of this youthful lady's heart! I challenge you as well!"

"Lee!" a masculine voice shouted, and a green blur flashed past Naruto and Sakura, landing right next to the spandex wearing _genin_. Sakura's eyes widened in horror.

 _Oh Kami, those eyebrows!_ Sakura cried in her head. She couldn't help but stare at the older man who was dressed almost identically to Lee. In fact, was that his father!?

"Lee, you're teammates are waiting for you," the older man chided his student. "It's most unyouthful to beat up the competition before the fights even begin!"

"Yes Gai-sensei! I'm sorry Gai-sensei!" Lee replied, bowing deeply. "I will find my team with vigor!"

"That's the spirit, Lee!" Gai replied with a thumbs up and sparkling grin. "Now get to it!" With haste, Lee ran past Naruto and Sakura, winking at the latter, and down the hall. Gai smiled as he watched his beloved student leave. He then looked at Sasuke, and hefted the boy to his feet. "Aha, so this must be the team that defeated Momochi Zabuza," he observed, his fiery expression dimmed down to embers. "It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Maito Gai, one of the _Jounin_ -instructors. As much as I'd love to speak more with you, the _Chunin_ Exams are about to begin. You'd be best to not be late." Sasuke shakily nodded, walking up to his teammate.

"C'mon, _dobe_ ," he grunted, though without anger behind his voice. "Let's get going." Sakura smiled and kissed Naruto's cheek before letting him go.

"Good luck, Naruto-ku… Naruto…" Naruto never noticed the light blush on the girl's cheeks as he waved to her. "Be safe… please…" she whispered out of his hearing range. A strong hand rested on her shoulder, making her flinch and quickly move away from the grip of one Maito Gai. "S-Sorry…" she bowed slightly in apology.

Gai was a bit shocked at her reaction. "A tad jumpy," he stated. "Well, I wouldn't worry about your friends," he comforted the young girl, not risking to make further advances towards her. "I could see the flames of burning passion in their eyes! A will so strong that they are filled to the brim of the springtime of youth!" Sakura felt a bead of sweat drop down the back of her neck.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, The Bent Shuriken, September 14** **th** **)**

Anko sat separately from her fiancé, looking up at him every so often. This was how it was. This was their life, ever since he'd given her those harsh looks. Ever since he'd yelled at her for trying to find out why the Hokage was watching him. She stared down at the engagement ring on her finger, rubbing it. Could she… really marry Kaeru when he was hiding something so big that he wouldn't tell her? That could be a threat to Konoha? She smiled a little bit, watching as Obito tried to struggle his way out of his wheelchair. Rin, however, was having none of that, and was stomping on his chest to get him to sit down again.

"Dammit Tobi-kun!" Rin growled, smashing the table over the recovering Uchiha's head. "Sit back and relax or I'll strangle you until you do!"

"B-B-But-"

"No buts!" Rin scolded, "I'm responsible for your recovery. So you better do what I say or I'll knock you out again!"

" _H-Hai_ Rin-chan…" Obito sighed. A few of the other patrons laughed at the future Hokage's universal plight. The natural male fear of strong willed women. "Oi, hand me that drink." Rin rolled her eyes and handed the boy his glass of Sunrise Splash with a smirk.

"Hello everyone," a hard voice greeted the four, drawing their attention. Kakashi strolled into the lush bar, followed by Kurenai, Asuma, and Gai. He glared pointedly at Kaeru. "Uchiha-san."

"Hatake," Kaeru returned the look. "I'm surprised that you took the time off." Kaeru glanced at the headband covering the silver haired man's missing eye. "I see, you've become a _Jounin_ , haven't you?"

"No thanks to you," Hatake admitted. "I've been trying to get this position for a while, now. Hokage-sama wouldn't allow it until you took up a _genin_ team."

"So will you be taking up a team?" Kaeru asked. Kakashi's lone eye softened a bit. Sure, the two hated each other, but they weren't always at each other's throats. Every so often they would be civilized.

"Actually, Hokage-sama assigned me a team whose _Jounin-sensei_ was killed in action. Team Four," Kakashi replied. "They're in the _Chunin_ Exams right now."

"Well then," Kaeru smirked, "may the best team win." Anko slowly stood up.

"I have to go do my duties as proctor," she announced. "Are you coming Kaeru?"

"Yeah, I should probably go," the man sighed. The tense air between the couple was obvious.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Outside the Forest of Death, September 14** **th** **)**

Naruto sighed as he paid no attention to Anko's spiel. It wasn't that he wasn't excited that he'd somehow passed the first test, he was! But his eyes and hands kept wandering to the locket hung around his neck by an iron chain. It was a simple circular locket, probably only cost her seven hundred ryo. But it held her picture inside. A special picture she'd taken just for him. It was of his best friend smiling at him from their bed, dressed in comfy pajamas. His heart ached thinking about her.

"Pay attention, _gaki_!" Anko flung a kunai towards Naruto, scratching his cheek. "What I'm saying could save your life!" Naruto's eyes widened as he felt his injury. Anko had received his attention. "Now then, send one of your team to get either a Heaven or Earth scroll. C'mon, I don't have all day!" Sasuke grunted and walked up to grab a scroll, leaving Naruto alone for a moment. The blond opened the locket, staring at the picture of Sakura.

"I'll come back alive for you…" he mumbled, closing the piece of jewelry. He smirked and placed it down the front of his jacket. "I've already come this far. I can't back down yet! Not until I become Hokage!" He was unceremoniously smacked in the face by a scroll.

"It's Heaven," Sasuke told the blond. "Now you can hold onto it. If we get in a bind then you can clone yourself and scatter."

"Who the hell made you in charge, Sasuke?" Naruto growled. Sasuke shot the boy a glare, making Naruto pause. Sasuke rushed at the boy and grabbed him by the neck of his jacket.

" _Baka_ , we're only a two man team!" Sasuke hissed. "We have to work twice as hard as these losers just to keep up! If you hadn't slacked off in training to spend time with that deadweight than I'd be more relaxed about this!"

"Sakura-chan is important!" Naruto shoved his teammate away. "Besides, I haven't been slacking off! I've been training just as hard as you!"

"Then prove it, _dobe_!" Sasuke grunted. "Now let's get to our gate. We have an exam to pass." Naruto rolled his eyes as he followed his raven haired teammate.

"We have an exam to pass~" Naruto spoke in a mocking tone under his breath. "I'm Sasuke, and I like to brood in a corner and prefer using my left hand rather then-"

"Shut up, _dobe_!" Sasuke growled in front of him. They arrived at gate seven in only a few minutes. They were surprised to see Kaeru standing there.

"Kaeru- _sensei_? What are you doing here?" Naruto asked curiously. The man gave them a warm smile.

"To just cheer you on," he chuckled. "And I'm your gatekeeper. I'll be letting you guys in. Hey, listen," Kaeru's face became serious. "You guys better be careful. Without Sakura-chan, you don't have the advantage of brains. Like it or not, she rounded out the team, so Naruto-kun." He glanced at the blond. "As much as you don't want to, listen to Sasuke-kun." The blond pouted as a smug grin appeared on Sasuke's face. "But Sasuke-kun, listen to Naruto-kun's advice. He has a lot more than you give him credit for, so keep an open mind."

" _Hai_ , Kaeru- _sensei_ ," Sasuke sighed. Kaeru smirked and patted both of their heads.

"Good luck in there," he said, before opening the door to let the boys in. He gave them a moment, and sighed before entering the forest himself. He remembered this. His former teacher. It was happening here, too. And his teacher had just the things he needed to make his plan a reality. Without hesitation, Kaeru took to the trees and activated his _**Sharingan**_ , making his way towards the gate the _Kusagakure_ (Village Hidden in the Grass) team had been allowed in. When he arrived, there was no trace of them. He scanned the ground with his _**Sharingan**_ for a good minute before picking up a shallow footprint. He smirked and followed the prints further into the Forest of Death. He and Anko knew this forest like the back of their hands, as did Orochimaru. He knew exactly where they'd be. Easy enough, he heard a scream in the distance, encouraging Kaeru to quicken his pace. He came across the _Hebi Sannin_. He was noticed with ease.

"Ah, Kaeru-kun," Orochimaru hissed out with a sly smile. "I didn't expect to see you first. I honestly thought Anko-chan would find me, kukuku." Kaeru rolled his eyes. "Oh, so dismissive of your _sensei_ , boy… How rude, you know. What will you do now, now that you've found me? Turn me over to that fool of a Hokage?"

"Actually, I think I'll let you go for now," Kaeru replied, watching amusedly at his former _sensei_ 's surprised eyes. "You have something I want, but I can't get that until you kill the old man." Orochimaru's eyes narrowed with suspicion.

"And what is it that you want from me, boy?" the _sannin_ asked. Kaeru chuckled.

"Damn, you sound like you're having an orgasm every time you talk," Kaeru taunted, making the snake scowl. "But what I want is your research. But I need the old man dead before I can use it." Kaeru smirked. "So I'll let you go on with your little invasion plan. But know that no matter what you do, I'll be coming for you eventually."

"Don't act like you can defeat me!" Orochimaru hissed, quickly drawing his sword from his throat and lunging at his former student. Kaeru grinned and slid to the side, avoiding the first downward swipe. "I am nearly immortal! I can kill you with ease!" Orochimaru slashed in an 'X', while Kaeru ducked and weaved past each slice, his hands remaining in his pants pockets. The boy's grin infuriated Orochimaru. Stack that upon the boy dodging every strike, he was becoming mad.

"You've lost your touch, _sensei_ ," Kaeru taunted. "I remember you being faster. And… less creepy." Kaeru spun and roundhouse kicked the silky haired snake.

"Kuh!" Orochimaru slid back, stunned at how much strength Kaeru had. _How?_ He mentally raged as Kaeru slowly sauntered forward. _How is he so strong in such a small amount of time!? He can't possibly be stronger than me!_ He went through a small amount of handseals. " _ **Katon: Jigokuneko no Jutsu**_ **(Fire Release: Hellcat Technique)**!" he hissed, inhaling deeply and exhaling two large flames that took the form of tigers as they rushed towards Kaeru. Kaeru sighed and reached behind him, grabbing the handle of his tanto.

"Just this?" he asked. "Orochimaru- _sensei_ , you wound me with your insult."

" _ **Futon: Kazeha no Jutsu**_ **(Wind Release: Wind Blade Technique)**!" Orogimaru followed up his first attack. The speed of the wind release caught up with the tigers, letting the beasts absorb the energy and increase in size.

"That's more like it," Kaeru chuckled, drawing his tanto. " _ **Kenjutsu: Sandabado no Dansu**_ **(Sword Technique: Dance of the Thunderbird)**!" Kaeru's tanto began to spark a bright orange as he drew the blade quickly. He rushed forward, his tanto sparking madly, as he sliced through the two tigers of flame. " _Suitoru_ (Absorb)!" The flames began to enter the tanto as it returned to its sheath. Orochimaru scowled as he saw his attack reduced to nothing. " _Kai_ (Release)!" Kaeru drew his tanto once more, dashing towards the pale man. Red hot flames began trailing from his tanto as it was revealed to the world once more.

" _Teme_!" Orochimaru hissed, making a few single handed seals and spitting water over his blade _Kusanagi_ (Grass Mowing Sword) before he swung to block the flaming blade of his enemy. The two blades struck, yellow sparks flying off of both through the pressure. "How!?" Orochimaru screamed. "This sword should cut through yours like butter! How is it resisting me!?"

"Because fuck you!" Kaeru grinned. " _ **Kiraton: Rukojuyon Sho**_ **(Spark Release: Sixty Four Palms)**!"

"Impossible!" Orochimaru hissed, pressing harder against Kaeru's blade, which quickly slipped back into its sheath before Kaeru jumped back. Orochimaru stumbled forward slightly, his eyes widening as he recognized a bastardized stance of the _Jyuuken_. "That isn't possible! No one could teach you that!"

"Kenkin-chan…" Kaeru whispered. "Thank you so much…" Kaeru's eyes closed, and opened quickly to reveal his _**Mangekyou Sharingan**_ to his sensei. His hands sparked with his _Kiraton_. Then, he disappeared.

"T-Those eyes!" Orochimaru managed before he was struck.

" _Ni sho_ (Two Palms)!" Kaeru seemed to swipe his hand across Orochimaru's body, though lashed his fingers out twice to send shocks into his former sensei's body. Orochimaru was stunned, unable to move as the sparks travelled within him. " _Yon sho! Hachi sho! Juuroku sho! Sanjuuni sho!_ _ **Kiraton: Rokujuyon sho**_!" Kaeru struck thirty two more points on Orochimaru as foam began to fall from the man's mouth. Orochimaru fell to the ground, still very aware, but unable to control his body as the nerves in his arms, neck, legs, and torso wouldn't respond from being fried. He couldn't even shed his skin, the attack had bypassed the useless woman's body and struck his as well. "You'll be fine in a few hours. Try not to die, Orochimaru _-sensei_. I still have use for you." He smirked as the man could only choke and gag in response. Kaeru took off towards another team, knowing who his next target, and threat, would be. It only took him a few hours to arrive at their camp. The silver hair and glinting glasses gave the boy away. His eyes, still in their _**Mangekyou**_ form, released a burst of chakra. " _ **Houkou Nodarou**_ **(Will of Houkou)** ," he murmured, trapping the small 'genin' team in an illusion, making them walk around in circles. Before they could free themselves, Kaeru leapt towards them and sliced their heads off their shoulders, starting with Yakushi Kabuto. "That's the final one before the invasion…" Kaeru quickly made his way towards the center tower. He entered nonchalantly, making his way to the top of the tower. He discovered his fiancé waiting for him, a frown on her face and her arms crossed. She was looking down at her feet.

"Kaeru-kun…" she whispered. "I… I don't want us to be like this… I'm sorry I asked weird questions…" She seemed to wince when she apologized. It was one of the few times she had honestly apologized. Anko looked up at Kaeru with teary eyes and got to her knees, bowing. It was awkward and slow, her neck exposed to him. "Please. I want to be together again." He voice held more strength, but was still submissive. She stayed silent as she heard him walks towards her, and felt him pick her up. Her eyes widened as she felt his lips against hers.

"Let's find us a room, Anko-chan," he smiled as he pulled away. Anko blushed, holding herself against him. Her warm grin turned into a sly smile.

"Oh? Planning on ravishing a sweet, innocent woman like me till I can't walk straight?" she teased.

"Meh, if I do my job right, then you'll be unable to get out of bed for a week!" Kaeru responded with a laugh, making Anko's blush deepen. Anyone who passed their room that day would all quickly move on, their cheeks red from the sounds they were hearing.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Central Tower, Forest of Death, September 19** **th** **)**

Hiruzen stared at Kaeru with distrust as he sat on the ground floor of the preliminary room. The man had done something in the Forest of Death, and had hidden it from him. The ANBU following Kaeru had suddenly lost his tracks, as if the man knew he was being followed. He couldn't find Kaeru with his scrying crystal. That man was hiding something. Something big. And Hiruzen didn't like it one bit. The man almost reminded Hiruzen of Danzo. The difference was, Danzo always kept Konoha's interests in mind. They'd even trusted one another to an extent. The same couldn't be said in confidence with Kaeru. The Uchiha kept his cards close, and right under the noses of most of the council and the rest of Konohagakure. Hiruzen's attention was drawn as a certain violet haired kunoichi stumbled into the room beside him. She had a bright blush and a dazed smile on her face. He could hear her light moans as she tried to walk straight.

"I-I'm here, Hokage-s-sama…" Anko panted out. She did her best to stand up tall, but ended up having to lean against Hiruzen's seat. The old man sighed, shaking his head in both exasperation and jealousy. Anko sighed contently and rubbed her stomach, hoping to give her fiancé the good news after the preliminaries. Now wasn't an appropriate time, after all. She hadn't gotten a chance to tell him since he had to meet his team, after all. Not long after, the _genin_ teams entered the arena room, lining up against the upper balcony. Kaeru leapt up to his team, Hiruzen's eyes boring into the man. Kaeru made his way over to his two students who looked roughed up and tired.

"I hope you both slept well," he greeted them, earning glares from his students.

"You're so loud…" Sasuke grumbled. "It kept us up…"

"In my defense, I barely made that much noise," Kaeru chuckled. "It was all Anko-chan." Naruto's face lit up red at the thought of one of his best friends, Chichi anyway, screaming out so many obscenities while she was…

"AAAAAAGH I CAN'T GET IT OUT OF MY HEAD!" Naruto screamed, covering his ears. Kaeru laughed and removed one hand from the blond's head.

"Imagine," Kaeru teased. "What if the sounds were coming from you and our favorite little pinkette?" Naruto's face seemed to beam red as he imagined himself and Sakura doing the same deed that his _sense_ and his fiancé had been doing. Naruto promptly passed out.

"Hah! What a little wimp!" Kiba laughed, walking towards the group with his _ninken_ (ninja dog), Akamaru sitting on his head. "Oh man, he's just like Hinata!"

"Don't be rude, Kiba-kun," Kurenai chided the scruffy haired boy, arriving with Shino and Hinata in tow. She then turned to Kaeru. "Hello there, Kaeru-kun. I see your students have passed as well. That's quite impressive for a two man team of _genin_." Sasuke grunted, not happy that it wasn't him who had ensured their survival.

"It is," Asuma and Team Ten approached them as well. "It seems like your little brats are more capable than ours, anyway."

"Yeah, I doubt it," Kiba bragged. "I bet they just met a super weak foreign team and got lucky!"

"I wouldn't count on it," Shikamaru spoke up, leaning against the wall and sliding down to a sitting position. "Those foreign teams aren't anything to sneeze at. Almost everyone here was our seniors, and somehow we all seemed to make it through."

"I-I'm very happy we all made i-it!" Hinata smiled sweetly. "It's like a reunion!"

"Yeah, I guess so…" Ino sighed, her voice trailing off. At Hinata's words, she seemed to lose a certain fire in her eyes. "Well, not all of us are here…" The moods of the _genin_ turned somber, and teams Ten and Six seemed to give Naruto pitiful looks. Asuma and Kurenai nodded, both of them taking Kaeru by an arm and pulling him aside.

"So, the rookies managed to make it past the second exam," a disciplined voice spoke up. The members of the three teams turned to see a boy with long, brown hair and pale white eyes with no visible pupils. He had a light smirk on his face as he looked over the teams until he reached Hinata. "Hinata-sama. It seems you have made it here as well."

" _Hai_ , Neji-niisan," Hinata smiled, her face flushing a little. "I will do my best from here on out. Your training will not be wasted."

"It had better not," Neji replied, shifting his weight to one leg and resting a hand on his hip. "I'd hate for the Hyuuga Heiress to be sent back before myself. I would never let you live it down."

 _He looks like such a flake…_ most of the _genin_ thought.

"Neji-kun!" a high pitched voice called out. "Dammit, why didn't you wait for us!?" Neji sighed as a girl with light brown hair arrived. Her hair was in two buns on either side of her head, and she wore a short sleeved, pink vest and long, black shinobi pants. The girl had a cute face, made even cuter by how angry she looked. "Lee was annoying the hell out of me when you suddenly just disappeared! Ugh, do you know how many times I have to put up with him shouting for his 'youthful' rival when you leave!?"

"That is exactly the reason why I leave,Tenten," Neji replied with a smirk. "So I will not have to listen to him. You should follow my example and leave him as well."

"That's just mean," Tenten sighed. "I'd never leave our teammate alone like that. Not after what happened _last_ time." Both Neji and Tenten shivered.

"Hey, are you guys Lee's teammates?" Naruto asked, now conscious once again.

"You know these two, Naruto?" Kiba asked.

"Yeah, we ran into their teammate and _sensei_ before the exams began," Naruto admitted. "Sasuke and Lee ended up in a little spar before we started.

"Sasuke-kun is so cool!" Ino cheered, grabbing onto said boy's arm, much to his annoyance.

"Ahem, it's good to see you again, Neji-kun," Kaeru spoke from behind the teams. Neji bowed.

"You as well, Kaeru-jisan," Neji responded. "It has been a _very long while_." The bite was evident in Neji's tone. "I believe the last time you saw me was four years ago."

"Ah… yeah…" Kaeru chuckled nervously. "Sorry, Neji-kun. I've been pretty busy recently. But, I do have a small gift for you after the exams end. And I look forward to seeing you fight. I hope Hizashi-san's lessons are better than mine. You'll need it against Naruto-kun and Sasuke-kun here." Sasuke gave the Hyuuga a smirk and Naruto rubbed the back of his head with a wide grin.

"I look forward to it as well," Neji replied. At that moment, the Hokage called for everyone's attention. He greeted everyone and congratulated them on making it so far in the exams. Then, he revealed why the _Chunin_ exams existed. As a replacement for war. Instead of sending children onto a battlefield and giving them field promotions, the best of every invited hidden village would be pitted against one another in a competition to see who has the skills to be qualified as a _Chunin_. At that point, the proctor of the exam introduced himself as Gekko Hayate, and revealed that as there were too many contestants, they would be matched up in random fights for a preliminary round. The actual third test of the _Chunin_ Exams would take place a month after these preliminaries. He then asked if anyone desired to pull out of the exam, of which no one did. With that, Hayate took a step back and the first two contestant's names arrived on the screen behind the Hokage.

 **Senko Hiruzen VS Nara Shikamaru**

Shikamaru sighed as he slowly picked himself up off the floor. His opponent, a light skinned boy with raven hair in a messy bob, leaped down onto the floor. The boy wore a black overcoat and black shinobi pants. He wore black sandals and has soft features on his face. There was nothing particularly outstanding about the boy aside from his cocky smile.

"Who is that?" Naruto asked aloud.

"That would be one of my students," a proud voice announced his presence. Kaeru chuckled.

"Hatake-san," Kaeru announced. "So he's one of yours, huh? Not all that impressive. I'm a bit disappointed."

"Don't be deceived by his looks, Uchiha-san," Kakashi replied. "Hiruzen is quite strong. He's been a _genin_ for a year, now, and has had time to hone his skills. Your cousin doesn't stand a chance against him."

"We'll see, Hatake-san. We'll see," Kaeru replied as Shikamaru took his time descending the stairs. The pony-tailed boy grumbled to himself.

"This is so troublesome," he sighed. "I sit down to take a rest, and I'm the first one to fight. Well, at least I can finish this and sleep through the rest of the matches."

"Don't think you'll get off easy just because you're from a prominent clan!" Hiruzen taunted. "The Senko Clan is nothing to be laughed at! I'll show you and everyone else that we're one of the best!" Shikamaru shrugged and placed his hands in his pockets.

"Shikamaru's got this," Kaeru stated suddenly, with confidence.

"What makes you say that?" Kakashi asked, curious. Kaeru merely chuckled.

"I've been training him a little bit. Just off to the side on days off," Kaeru admitted. Sasuke groaned, not sure to be happy that those days actually gave him time to relax, or be upset that his cousin was training Shikamaru on those days. "He has a few tricks." Hayate stood between the two contestants, off to the side.

" _Hajime_ (Start)!"

Hiruzen started his match by seemingly disappearing as Shikamaru tossing out shuriken and kunai at random. He ducked, avoiding a strike from Hiruzen as the boy flipped over him, disappearing once more. Shikamaru tossed out more kunai as he tried to hit his opponent.

"How fast is this guy!?" Naruto shouted. Kakashi chuckled.

"Hiruzen is part of Konohagakure's Senko Clan," he explained. "The Senko Clan is known for having a kekkei genkai that allows their bodies to ignore friction, thus moving at speeds some shinobi can only dream of. Unfortunately, the clan is pretty small, since their kekkei genkai skips a few generations. Hiruzen here got lucky, and is one of their fastest fighters. A natural prodigy."

"Shikamaru's still got this in the bag," Kaeru stated.

"Not bad for a rookie!" Hiruzen smirked, slamming his leg against Shikamaru's side.

"Hu!" the Nara grunted.

"But you can't beat me like- huh!?" Hiruzen tried to move his leg, but Shikamaru had grabbed onto it tightly. "Let go of me!"

"Not a chance," Shikamaru smirked, letting the boy go. Hiruzen tried to move but found that he was still stuck. "I had a little trouble with your speed, but you aren't exactly that bright." Shikamaru held a single Rat handseal with his right hand. Suddenly, Hiruzen noticed that Shikamaru's shadow was weaved through the kunai and shuriken in a trange stitching on the ground. Shikamaru had been following him and waiting for him to stop and attack. " _ **Kagemane no Jutsu**_ **(Shadow Imitation Technique)** , success." Shikamaru slowly stood, holding the seal, as Hiruzen moved into the same position as Shikamaru against his will. "Now I think it's time to end our fight here." Shikamaru walked over to an empty spot and reached down as if to pick something up. Hiruzen's body did the exact same, but picked up a kunai. "If you don't surrender I'll slit your wrist and let you bleed until you pass out."

"You're bluffing!" Hiruzen pleaded, worry plastered on his face.

"Damn, Shika's actually pretty scary…" Ino shivered as she spoke. Choji nodded in agreement.

"Have it your way then," Shikamaru sighed, holding his hand over his wrist.

"D-Dammit! I surrender!" Hiruzen shouted. Hayate nodded.

"Nara Shikamaru is the winner by forfeit," he proclaimed as Shikamaru released Hiruzen from his jutsu. The Nara slowly made his way back up the stairs as Hiruzen did the same, not far behind.

"That was pathetic," one of the girls in front of Kakashi insulted their teammate. "Losing to a rookie!" Said girl had long auburn hair tied in a ponytail, and dark green eyes. She wore loose, white robes and had lightly tanned skin.

"Now now, Riku-kun," Kakashi chided her, "Hiruzen-kun tried his best. Now let's see who goes next. It will do you good to study your opposition."

"Hmph, like we'll actually lose," the other girl rolled her eyes, her arms crossed. She was almost an exact replica of the other girl, except her robes were black. Kakashi sighed and rubbed Hiruzen's shoulder as he looked at the next matchup.

 **Aburame Shino VS Sabaku no Gaara**

Shikamaru glanced at Shino with worry. "Shino… About that guy…" he started to say, but the Aburame simply nodded, cutting the boy off.

"Proctor," Shino announced louder than usual. "My insects have warned me of just how dangerous my opponent is. I would like to forfeit my match." Gaara glared at the Aburama, a scowl on his face. Hayate, however, simply nodded in response. Kurenai rested a hand on Shino's shoulder, squeezing it to let the boy know she was not upset with his decision. At some point, Gai and Lee had arrived to take their place with Tenten and Neji.

 **Yamanaka Ino VS Sabaku no Temari**

While Temari smirked at the matchup, Ino was much less excited. "You can do it, Ino!" Choji cheered his teammate as she walked down the stairway to the arena. Ino lightened up a little bit, but was still nervous. She'd seen what this girl's teammate could do. For all she knew this girl could be a monster as well!

"You'd better put up a good fight," Temari taunted, reaching back for the large stick she was carrying around. She twirled it above her and slammed it onto the ground, making Ino flinch at the resulting cracking in the floor. "I bet I won't even have to work up a sweat!"

"Grrr… don't you underestimate me…" Ino growled.

"You got this Ino!" Naruto cheered from the sidelines. "Show this chick just what Konoha shinobi are made of!" Ino smiled a little bit.

 _Man, if he wasn't such a weirdo than Naruto would be kinda cute_ , she thought to herself, a confident smile appearing on her face. _I can do it! All I have to do is get into her head!_

" _Hajime_!"

Temari started off by dashing to the side, avoiding Ino's attempt to quickly enter her mind. The _Suna_ genin smirked as Ino tried to recover from her missed jutsu. She decided to put the girl out of her misery. Her brother was getting antsy after the Aburame forfeited. The sooner he got out of here to kill someone, the less likely he'd snap before everything was ready. Twirling her massive weapon around, Temari swung down on Ino. The younger girl dodged the attack and pulled out a kunai, slashing at Temari. The older girl blocked the strikes with her weapon and spun around, cracking Ino across the head, instantly knocking the girl out. Temari sighed and gave the girl a disappointed look.

"What a weakling. She doesn't even deserve to be called a kunoichi," Temari stated before jumping back up to the stands as two medical nin came to take Ino to the infirmary. Choji gripped the bars tightly after seeing and hearing Temari.

"Calm down," Shikamaru told his friend. "We both know Ino was outclassed as soon as the names came up."

"I know…" Choji grumbled, "but what she said… I can't forgive her for saying that about our teammate…" Shikamaru rubbed his friend's back in response.

 **Uchiha Sasuke VS Inuzuka Kiba**

"Hell yeah!" Kiba shouted, quickly running down the stairs. "I'm finally gonna get my chance to kick this jerk's teeth in!" Sasuke rolled his eyes and followed in a casual pace. "Hurry up jackass!"

"Shut up, already," Sasuke responded, reaching the bottom of the stairs. He stood across from Kiba with a smirk. "I'll just prove that no matter what, you're still weak compared to me."

"I'll make you eat those words!" Kiba growled. "Get ready _teme_!"

" _Hajime_!"

Sasuke smirked as he ran at Kiba, the Inuzuka doing the same alongside Akamaru. Sasuke drew a kunai from his holster as Kiba's nails extended into claws. Kiba swiped at Sasuke's head while Akamaru aimed for his legs. Sasuke twirled to the side, immediately slashing at Kiba's hand and leaving a jagged cut, then immediately returning the kunai to his holster.

"Dammit!" Kiba growled, charging at Sasuke again as the boy backed off a little. Akamaru barked and leaped from behind Sasuke, pushing the boy towards his partner. "Got you now!" Kiba swiped at Sasuke again, managing to scrape Sasuke's shoulder before the Uchiha lunged further onto Kiba's nails, surprising the boy. Sasuke drew another kunai from his pouch and stabbed it into Kiba's shoulder, returning it once again before drawing it out once more to swipe at Kiba's face while the boy stumbled back from being stabbed.

"You're slow," Sasuke chided. Akamaru came to the defense of his master from the side, but was swiped out of the air when he leapt for Sasuke's face. Sasuke held Akamaru around his stomach and held the kunai to the _ninken_ 's neck. "Forfeit or I chop off his head."

"A-Akamaru," Kiba growled, unsure of what to do. "You bastard! That's not fair!"

"The life of a shinobi isn't fair, _baka_ ," Sasuke replied, pressing the kunai harder against Akamaru's neck, making the dog whimper. "Now forfeit before I kill the mutt."

"Damn you…" Kiba growled. "Fine… I forfeit…" Sasuke grunted, letting go of the _ninken_. Akamaru scurried over to Kiba, licking the boy's face and whining. "It's not your fault, boy… We just got one-upped by that asshole." Akamaru barked and jumped onto his partner's head. "Heh, yeah, we'll definitely get him next time!" Sasuke merely rolled his eyes as he ascended the staircase.

Kaeru sighed and walked over towards the door as the next matchup was called. He wasn't really interested in the rest of the matched. Tenten would wreck whoever fought her, same with Lee and Neji. Hinata would probably have some trouble, and Naruto… well, Naruto would definitely win. Choji would probably have some trouble as well. Then there was Kankuro, and the two girls Kakashi had. Kankuro would do alright if he played it smart, and he wasn't worried about the two girls. They'd probably flunk out soon enough. Perhaps the only major threat was that team from _Otogakure_ (Village Hidden in the Sound) _._ He stood out in the hallway and took out his trusty book and began to read when he heard the door open. Glancing to the side, he saw it was the _Otogakure_ ' _Jounin-instructor'_. He inwardly smirked.

"Looking for a little revenge, _sensei_?" Kaeru chuckled, rolling his eyes. He heard the man sigh and watched him shake his head.

"Not yet," Orochimaru replied with his disguise's voice. "I will kill you someday, but not while I'm unprepared." Orochimaru licked his lips. "And I'll make sure to kill you before you get close to me, kukukuku."

"Your death is getting closer, _sensei_ ," Kaeru said, not once looking away from his book. "Even your so called _immortality_ can't stop it. The only reason I need to keep you around is because of your invasion."

"And just how did you manage to figure that out, Kaeru-kun?" Orochimaru asked, genuinely curious.

"I know much more than you could ever imagine," Kaeru chuckled. "Trust me. What you saw back in the Forest of Death was only a hint of my power. I could crush you right this very moment but it would hinder me more than help me."

"Pray tell what this little plan of yours is," Orochimaru asked. "I won't tell a living soul. I swear it." Kaeru chuckled and rolled his eyes.

"How friendly you are to the enemy, _sensei_. How traitorous," Kaeru smiled, the joke earning a soft chuckle from Orochimaru. "I do miss those days, before you started those experiments. I know Anko-chan does as well."

"I do what I must to stay alive," Orochimaru countered. "Surely I know you think the same way, or else you would have disposed of me when I was stunned by your attack."

"Please, we all know that you're a tricky motherfucker to kill," Kaeru replied. "You'd have found a way to slip away. Hn. Damn, you're a troublesome guy, you know that?"

"I've been called worse," Orochimaru joked with a smirk. The two were silent for a few minutes. "I see you've taken to my former teammate's works."

"Trying to make small talk, eh? How unlike you, _sensei_ ," Kaeru smirked. "You realize that when your invasion begins, we'll be enemies once more."

"While Anko-chan had been my favorite student, you were the one I could discuss most maturely with," Orochimaru stated. "I take nostalgia in this. But rest assured, it won't be _me_ who dies that day." Kaeru chuckled.

"It will be the old man," he confirmed, with Orochimaru smirking.

"You seem to have quite the insistence on killing Sarutobi- _sensei_ ," the pale man pointed out. "Possibly even more than I do."

"He's just something I need to get rid of."

"You never _did_ tell me what you were planning." There was a pause.

"War," Kaeru replied with, making Orochimaru raise an eyebrow.

"Just a war? And here I thought you had an impressive grand scheme that outshined mine."

"Not just any war. A full world war. Involving the Elemental Nations and beyond." Orochimaru's eyes narrowed. "One side against the other."

"The Elemental Nations? Working together? Impossible!" Orochimaru claimed. "That's just as likely as the dead coming back to life! Permanently, anyway. Besides, you can't possibly mean the _entire_ Earth."

"I do," Kaeru responded, putting his book away. "I'm tired of this. Let's go back in."

"Kukuku, my student is so ambitious," Orochimaru chuckled. "We'll see if you can make your plan a reality when I kill you." Kaeru returned to a grave scene. Naruto was on the arena floor up in the face of one of Kakashi's girls, the one with the white robes, and his locket crushed beside the girl's foot. Blood was pooled up on the floor as Choji's body was carted out to the infirmary. Kurenai shot Kaeru a hard look as she spotted him.

"Where the hell were you!?" she hissed, slapping the man. "Naruto-kun's gotten himself into a blood oath! Damn you… You could have stopped things before Choji-kun…"

"What did I miss?" Kaeru asked. It was Shikamaru who spoke up.

"All of the _Oto_ shinobi are out. They got pitted against the remaining _Suna_ nin, that one girl's sister, Kisa, and Hinata. Neji and Tenten fought with Neji's win, and Lee and Naruto fought with Naruto's win. Though barely. The medics tried to take Naruto to the infirmary but he refused, so Hinata gave him some ointment instead. This was the last match…" Shikamaru grimaced. "It was brutal… Those girls don't know how to hold back, even for comrades…" Kaeru watched as Naruto had to be held back from striking the girl. "You should have been here, _sensei_ ," Shikamaru grumbled. "This is your fault." With that said, Hayate came forward not long after and had the winners draw lots. After everyone had taken a number, they posted the matchups on the screen behind the Hokage.

 **First Match: Sabaku no Temari VS Orihime Kisa**

 **Second Match: Hyuuga Neji VS Hyuuga Hinata**

 **Third Match: Sabaku no Kankuro VS Nara Shikamaru**

 **Fourth Match: Uzumaki Naruto VS Orihime Riku**

 **Fifth Match: Sabaku no Gaara VS Uchiha Sasuke**

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Hashirama Boulevard, September 19** **th** **)**

Sakura hummed quietly to herself as she walked down the stairs to the laundromat. It was a chore she had taken up ever since she'd moved in with Naruto. She'd do the laundry, cook the dinners, and pack the lunches that Naruto ate during training days. She often cleaned the apartment whenever she had time, and would usually read the rest of the day or practice new songs for work. And she was happy. The young girl smiled as a kind old gentleman, Ahsido Ken, his name was, opened the door for her. He was the owner of the laundromat, and a close friend of her mother's. When he'd caught wind of her condition, and that she'd moved out of her parents' home, he'd sworn to do whatever he could to help make her life easier.

"Good morning, Sakura-chan," the old man smiled at her. Sakura bowed a bit awkwardly, smiling in return.

"Good morning, Ahsido-san," Sakura replied. The old man chuckled.

"Ah, how many times have I told you to call me by my given name?" Ken asked. Sakura smiled and proceeded to the hot water tap and soap counter, Ken going behind the counter. "Same load as always?"

"It's a little bit smaller this week," Sakura shook her head. "My… roommate is in the _Chunin_ Exams, and hasn't returned yet." Ken chuckled as he poured a cup of laundry detergent. "I hope he's doing alright… I hear the exams are really dangerous during the second stage."

"Aye, that they are," Ken nodded. "I may not be a shinobi, myself, but I did exactly what you're doing now. Moved out when I was young, and lived with a shinobi. When exam times came around she was quite the excited one."

"Oh? How is she now?" Sakura asked. Ken smiled as he poured Sakura a bucket of hot water, and Sakura set the cost of the supplies on the counter.

"Why not ask her yourself?" Ken replied. "Hira-chan! How would you say you are!?" Sakura couldn't stop the giggle as the woman she recognized as Ken's wife appeared from around the corner.

"It's too damn quiet around here!" she yelled back. "Stop being a cheap bastard and get a radio for this place!" Sakura couldn't stop the laughter, causing Hira to notice her. "Oh, if it isn't Sakura-chan! This old brute isn't harassing you none, now, is he?" Hira smiled and approached the young girl, taking her bag of dirty clothes and following Sakura to the washing room. Around the corner was a large, tile room with several small walls separating wash areas. There were mostly women washing their clothes, with one or two men doing the same. At the back of the room was a door that led outside to a covered area with clotheslines to dry.

"It's good to see you again, Hira-obasan," Sakura smiled, taking up an empty wash area. "You never told me that you were a kunoichi!" Hira chuckled and sat down on the single bench of the area.

"Ah, that was quite the short stunt," Hira admitted. "I was only interested in joining to be closer to my crush. It didn't work, of course, but I don't regret it one bit."

"Oh? Who did you like?" Sakura asked curiously. Hira gave the young girl a warm smile.

"That would be telling," she teased. "It was actually Sarutobi Hiruzen-san," she admitted. Sakura's jaw dropped. Hira had once had a crush on the Sandaime? "But enough of me. I have a job to do. Have to keep a living up, you know." Hira stood and dusted her robes.

"Alright. It was nice talking to you Hira-obasan," Sakura smiled. The old lady left, leaving Sakura to do her laundery. It didn't take the girl long to finish. She had it down to a science after all. Plus, some of the other women she'd come to make friends with helped her hang her laundry to dry. She was by far the youngest person there. Sakura went back home afterwards. It would take several hours for her clothes to dry, so she had some free time. She grabbed a book she had yet to finish and headed out once more. The Hot Springs weren't that far from the apartment, only a few blocks away. She made it in only a few minutes. She entered the building already feeling relaxed, heading into the women's side of the springs. It didn't take long for her to strip down and wash herself down before finally taking a relaxing bath in the hot springs. Sakura smiled and let herself slip into the water, ignoring the few other women in the springs. It was at that moment, she heard something that would make her heart soar with relief, and burn with intense righteous fury. Naruto's voice.

" _Hey, who do you think you are, peeking into the women's side like that!?_ " Naruto was yelling. " _Ack! Hey! Get this thing off of me! Stop it!_ "

 **XXXXX**

 **Omake: Sakura's Dilemma**

 **(Konohagakure, September 15** **th** **)**

 _I really hope Naruto's ok…_ Sakura thought to herself as she walked down the store's isles. _Hm… oh, those look nice!_ Sakura stopped a moment to observe the objects of interest. She smiled. _Every budding young woman's best friend... Naruto wouldn't mind if I got one, right?_ Sakura stared harder at the selection. _Hm… This one is really pink and looks nice… but this looks like it might go down easier… Oh, what to choose…_ Sakura then noticed another option. _But this one is orange. Surely Naruto would forgive me if I got one that was his favorite color! B-But then maybe he'd want to watch… Or worse, have some of it himself!_ Sakura shivered. _I don't know what I'd do if it came to that! I want it all to myself!_ Sakura sighed and shook her head. _I really shouldn't get it, anyway… Not after what happened… It would just remind me of my failure… But…_ Sakura sighed and took the item off the shelf and brought it to the counter. _Maybe I can use it as a healing item. When things get really bad. Yes, that's it!_

 **XXXXX**

"Mmmph… so good…"

"More… I need to have more…"

"It isn't enough! I can't stop! Oh, it's so good!"

Haruno Kizashi arrived at Naruto's apartment hearing the strangest of sounds. It sounded like his wife when… He used the key Sakura had given him in case of emergencies and opened the door, revealing his beautiful daughter sucking on an orange popsicle.

"T-Tou-chan!" Sakura squeaked, the popsicle falling to the floor.

"I thought you said you were on a diet, Sakura-chan," Kizashi teased. "To fall into that habit once more! Just like your mother!"

"Please don't tell her!" Sakura begged.

"Ohohoh, my little girl is such a glutton!"

"Otou-cha~an!"

 **XXXXX**

 **A/N: No songlist. Damn, that was hard. Maybe during big moments, but never again.**

 **(1) Some Shadow the Hedgehog love.**

 **Edits: Accidentally gave an OC a second name. Oops. Changed it to the second since the first one will make things confusing later on. I've also noticed the (#)'s on the bottom haven't been showing up so now I'm editing those in.**


	8. Chapter Five: The Chunin Exams Part 2

**You are entering a world in which TheKaiSenpai still does not own Naruto.**

"Regular Speak"

" _Emphasized Speak"_

" _ **Multiple Shouting/Jutsu"**_

" **Bijuu/Demon Speak"**

 _Thoughts/Japanese Words_

 _ **Bijuu/Demon/Inner-Sakura Thoughts**_

 **XXXXX**

 **Chapter Five: The Chunin Exams Part 2**

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Konoha Hot Springs, September 19** **th** **)**

Jiraiya's attention was drawn to the soft patter of a single foot hitting the ground. Repeatedly. To his left. He'd heard that sound before when Tsunade was about to pummel him into the ground. He'd just been interrupted of his research by Naruto, so he was more concerned with that. He inwardly chuckled, the kid had grown since he'd last seen him. Of course that had been years ago, but it was still quite the shock. He was essentially the spitting image of his father, though gained his mother's rounded out face. And, from what he had just heard, the boy acted like his mother as well. He was interrupted from his thoughts from a hard, threatening, feminine voice.

"Who the hell do you think you are…?" the voice said. He glanced over to see a young, one armed pinkette. She was glaring at him, and was doing her best to keep the towel around her from falling.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted excitedly, beaming at his roommate. Sakura's eyes softened a moment when she heard his voice. Jiraiya couldn't help but grin. Minato's kid already had a good friend. From what he'd seen of _Jinchuriki_ in other villages, he'd been afraid that Naruto would grow up angry and vengeful. The long, white haired man was glad that his godson had found a friend. "This weirdo was peeking into the girl's side of the springs!"

"Weirdo!?" Jiraiya repeated, slightly hurt but slapping on his _hentai_ (pervert) persona for his own amusement. "I am not a weirdo for admiring the succulent, perfect form that is the human female body!"

"That's not admiration, that's peeping! You're nothing but a little pervert!" Sakura winced as Naruto spoke.

"I am _not_ a 'little pervert'," Jiraiya protested. "I'm a super pervert without equal!"

"Like that's any better…" Naruto grumbled. He pointed an accusing finger at the tall man. "Well you shouldn't be peeking on Sakura-chan! Or any girl! It's weird!" Sakura sent Naruto a look that said 'Really?'. Sakura rolled her eyes. Like she hadn't caught Naruto trying to peek on her every so often.

"Do you even know who I am, _gaki_?" Jiraiya asked in his persona. He was genuinely curious, though. He hadn't been around that often and wondered if the old man had told Naruto about him. Naruto, and Sakura, both shook their heads. Inwardly, Jiraiya was a bit hurt at the admission, but he kept up the act nonetheless. "I am the great _Gama Sennin_ (Toad Sage) of Mount Myoboku! The destroyer of evil! The wooer of beautiful women!" With every 'title', Jiraiya struck poses upon the head of a giant toad summon. "I am the beastly! The sensual! The awe inspiring! Jiraiya!" There was silence for a good minute.

"More like a pedophile," Naruto mumbled, causing Jiraiya to face-fault off of the toad, whom of which disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Wha- What the hell gives you that idea, _gaki_!?" Jiraiya growled.

"You were peeking at Sakura-chan!" Naruto pointed out.

"You were _what_!?" Sakura shrieked. Jiraiya backed up against the wall a little, actually a bit frightened by the glare he was getting from both children. "Pervert…!"

At the Hokage's office, Hiruzen sighed as he heard the screams of his student echo across the village.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Training Ground Ten, September 21** **st** **)**

Shikamaru grunted as he tried using his shadow to lift up the pile of stones Kaeru had placed. This was his training, using his shadow to manipulate physical objects. So far there was no luck. Unfortunately, this was a completely new technique in the making, so none of his clansmen could help. Kaeru could only instruct, since he had never learned how to proficiently use his shadow, focusing more on direct combat like an Uchiha. He understood what his cousin was trying to do, but Shikamaru was having trouble making it happen. Ino and Choji were both in the hospital, though Ino would be out later that day. Choji was barely alive with a broken spine, and it wasn't helping his focus. The likelihood of his best friend continuing his shinobi career looked slim to none.

"I can't understand what's wrong…" Kaeru sighed. "Everything should be perfect. You're doing everything right. I can't understand how this isn't working…"

"Can I take a rest, Kaeru- _sensei_ ," Shikamaru panted out. Kaeru nodded, and Shikamaru retracted his shadow and collapsed backwards. "If I knew that winning would mean working this hard than I would have forfeited." Anko, who had been watching them as she sat against a tree, got up and approached them.

"Shikamaru," she spoke up, drawing the two's attention. "When you control someone, how do you do it?"

"My shadow attaches to theirs and submits them to my will," Shikamaru explained. "I can only control their actions with my own, though. I've heard of some of my clan being able to control movements without having to move themselves." The Nara sighed dreamily. "They're really advanced, but it must be nice not having to move…" Kaeru glanced at his fiancé.

"Where are you going with this?" he asked. Anko held up her hand.

"When they do that, are they manipulating the object, or their shadow?"

"Their shadow," Shikamaru replied. "Why do you want to know?" Anko let out a thoughtful sound, then threw a kunai a few feet beside Kaeru.

"Run your shadow to that kunai," Anko commanded. Shikamaru sighed, before doing as she said. Anko then looked at her fiancé. "You're going to jump into the air as high as you can. You," she pointed to Shikamaru, "are going to attach your shadow to his once he jumps. Then, I want you to retract your shadow as fast as you can and let go of Kaeru-kun's." Shikamaru's eyes narrowed with thought. "Ready? Now jump!" Kaeru leapt up, using chakra to jump even further than normal. Anko's head whipped around to face Shikamaru. "Now!" Shikamaru quickly manipulated his shadow to attach to Kaeru's, then as soon as he felt the connection, quickly retracted it around the kunai and let go of Kaeru's shadow. The result was Kaeru being flung in the direction the kunai was in, seemingly for no reason. Anko beamed as she watched her fiancé sail out of sight over the tree line.

"That was clever thinking," Shikamaru complimented the girl, who stuck her tongue out cutely. "What gave you that idea?" Anko rolled her eyes and waggled her finger.

"A girl has to have her secrets, Shikamaru," she teased. Shikamaru sighed, interested in this new idea and how he could expand on it. It was something that none of his clansmen seemed to have thought of, which wounded his pride a little bit.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Uchiha Compound Dojo, September 27** **th** **)**

Obito sighed as Sasuke failed to even touch him. While the older Uchiha did not blame the boy for being so weak compared to him, he was surprised that Sasuke was so uncoordinated. The boy could easily be at _Chunin_ level, but his fighting style was so sloppy it was laughable. Kaeru must not have taught the boy anything besides the Uchiha Interceptor Style, and probably just skimmed over the basics. Obito sighed. As great a shinobi he was, a teacher, Kaeru was not. At least, not in the physical sense. Obito had to admit that Sasuke's jutsu library was advanced for his age and rank. Not only that, but Sasuke's perceptive planning was almost on par with his own. Sasuke's chakra limit was also quite high, about mid- _Chunin_ level at least, from what Obito could tell. The bottom line, he was almost impressed.

"Not bad, cuz'," Obito chuckled, watching as Sasuke collapsed onto the ground, panting. Beads of sweat dripped down his head. Even with Obito severely weakened, Sasuke still couldn't keep up. The only rivals Obito had were probably the old man, himself and Kaeru. Obito frowned as he thought of his other cousin. The guy was much too secretive for his liking. He had disappeared the day of the _Kyuubi_ 's attack when he should have been with the other youth in the secure barrier. He suddenly returned right after the attack along with Minato- _sensei_ 's child, claiming someone had tried to kidnap the baby. But Obito's eyes knew better. Kaeru was hiding something. And Obito didn't trust people who kept big secrets. "Go ahead and take a shower," Obito told his younger cousin after a little bit. He had some business to take care of. Sasuke didn't protest, slowly making his way to his feet and heading inside.

The elder Uchiha took off towards the rooftops, making his way to the Hokage's office. It was time they decided what to do with Kaeru. He was too big a threat to let walk around much longer. Too much of an unknown. He arrived within ten minutes of leaving the compound, only to find that someone else was meeting with the Hokage. Shimura Danzo, someone Obito wasn't quite sure how to think about. On one hand, the man loved Konohagakure more than anyone. He was devoted to the village through and through. On the other hand, Danzo was too war-like. He was too violent and would not work for the people of Konoha. The council and the Hokage, to him, was the entirety of Konoha. Everyone else were either tools or guests within its walls.

"We've waited long enough!" Danzo grumbled, glaring at his impassive former teammate. "We must either arrest him or execute him! That man is a threat to national security as he is, a walking spy!"

"Until I have proof of his 'betrayal', if it even is one, I will not take action," Hiruzen responded, taking a puff from his pipe. "Kaeru has done much more for Konohagakure than you give him credit for. It was he, after all, who helped keep our village's _jinchuriki_ safe from harm during Naruto's early years. It was he who also identified the _Kumo_ ambassador's plans to steal the _**Byakugan**_ before the event took place. Not only that, but Kaeru-san has run countless missions that others would be unable to for the welfare of this village."

"I hate to interject, Hokage-sama," Obito spoke up, drawing both men's attention. "I have noticed Kaeru acting more suspicious as well. He seems to lose focus often and has been drawing away from his friends. Even Anko-chan says that the loving feeling she once felt around him isn't as strong."

"That could simply be a falling out in a relationship, Obito-kun," Hiruzen pointed out. "If I didn't know how devoted that man was to her, I'd push your observations aside. Why do you insist we act?"

"Because I want to protect this village," Obito responded. "We caught Orochimaru- _teme_ too late, and I won't let the same happen with Kaeru-san." The room was silent for a while, each man's stare was fixed upon the others'. Finally, Hiruzen spoke again.

"I will hold a council meeting after the _Chunin_ Exams," he said. "I will have the important figures of this village decided whether or not to prosecute Kaeru-san. This is, after all, a decision that could affect each and every one of us." Hiruzen stood, marking the discussion as over. "I will see you both there."

" _Hai_ , Hokage-sama," Obito bowed curtly before leaving with a _**Shunshin**_. Danzo stared at Hiruzen for a moment before leaving as well.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, South Gate, October 5** **th** **)**

Two figures walked through the gate with little trouble. They wore black cloaks adorned with red clouds, and wearing conical straw hats upon their heads that hid their faces. They walked with confidence, not drawing any attention to themselves as they watched the villagers' hustle and bustle, setting up for some event. The _Chunin_ Exam finals started in fifteen days, but this was obviously a much closer event. The first of the strangers remembered the event as the _Kyuubi_ Festival. A celebration of the day the great _Kyuubi no Kitsune_ was defeated by the Yondaime Hokage. Of course, that was Konohagakure's worst kept lie. Propaganda to deter neighboring countries from attacking the weakened superpower. The first man nearly chuckled at the notion of a _Biju_ (Tailed Beast) being able to be defeated. Feeling the raw power of that beast… There was no way anyone could actually defeat it, not even the late Yondaime.

"It feels good to be home, doesn't it, _Karasu_ (Crow)?" the second man asked his partner. _Karasu_ merely chuckled, stopping as a small group of children ran in front of them, playing ninja. "Damn, Konohagakure is just like I've always imagined. And it isn't raining here like it does in _Amegakure_ (Village Hidden in the Rain). Maybe _Tenshi_ -chan (Angel) and I should move here."

"I'm sure _Kami_ -san would be opposed to that, _Daitenshi_ -san (Archangel)," _Karasu_ argued lightly as the two wandered the streets. "Kami-san would hate for his childhood friends to leave him. Now, we should focus on looking for or contact. He'll know where our target it, I'm sure."

"What a killjoy," _Daitenshi_ teased, making _Karasu_ smirk. "C'mon, you're gonna be a father when you get home! You have to teach your kid to enjoy life instead of working all day."

"That's what my wife is for," _Karasu_ replied, entering the establishment that they had been told to meet their contact in. The Bent Shuriken. Inside, the building was a new age theme. A depressed, hardwood floor with new age styled tables and seats, along with shrubbery separating booth tables. At one side was a long bar with stools running along it, and the other side was a small stage. Up on stage, _Karasu_ noticed a pink haired girl silently practicing off of a scroll. What made her noticeable, however, was her missing right arm.

"Hey, think we should bring her back to _Ninken_ -kun to hook up with?" _Daitenshi_ suggested. "Or do you think she's way out of his league?"

"She's in a current relationship," _Karasu_ revealed, sitting at a booth that allowed him visibility of the doors.

"How can you tell?" _Daitenshi_ asked testingly.

"On her neck, there is a hickey," _Karasu_ explained. "It's quite dark, although small. My guess is that her boyfriend is inexperienced, and most likely nervous of such a mark showing. For what reason, I'm unsure."

"Damn, your eyes are pretty badass," _Daitenshi_ complimented. _Karasu_ merely smirked and nodded slightly. "So are you looking forward to watching your little brother in the exams?"

"I would not be a good brother if I said 'no'," _Karasu_ pointed out. "I'm curious as to just how strong he has gotten." The two were interrupted from their casual chat by someone walking up to their table. The spiky haired Uchiha sat beside _Karasu_.

"'May the _Akatsuki_ rise'," he said.

"'And light the world to peace'," the two strangers finished. Obito smiled. "I apologize for almost destroying your mind, Obito-san."

"It's alright, _Karasu_ -kun," Obito chuckled. "It gave me time to think about a lot of things." Obito frowned. "I've suspected Kaeru is a traitor to Konohagakure."

"As have I," _Karasu_ admitted. "But I would rather not face him again. He demolished me and broke through my _**Tsukuyomi**_ , when he shouldn't have been able to."

"Demolished you?" Obito repeated, stunned. Even Obito would have some trouble facing _Karasu_. "How is that possible? Is he more dangerous than he lets on?"

"Very," _Karasu_ admitted. "I hope you're planning on ridding this world of him soon. He admitted to me that he has plans that involve the entirety of the Elemental Nations, as well as Naruto-kun and my _otouto_ (little brother). I believe he thought I would not tell anyone."

"Or maybe he wanted you to tell," _Daitenshi_ suggested. "I mean, he can't do whatever he wants if he's a part of Konohagakure. He'd have to be able to travel freely. What better way than to be a _nukenin_?" The table was silent for a long while as all three men contemplated what was on the table. So far, their only leads were bits and pieces of Kaeru's admissions of a dark, big secret. To them, it was obvious that they only knew these things because Kaeru allowed them. While they knew him mostly as an Uchiha, it was at this moment that his Nara side was shining through like a beacon to them. The question was not 'why'. He wanted to ensure that he was forced out of the village. The question was, 'but what after?'.

"How is Naruto-kun doing?" _Daitenshi_ asked, making Obito smile.

"The little squirt is training with Jiraiya-sama," Obito grinned as he informed his comrades. "So far he's been mastering the _Kyuubi_ 's chakra with great progress. Just a few days ago, Naruto-kun summoned Gamabunta, the toad summon boss, on the outskirts of the village."

"Impressive," _Daitenshi_ smiled. "So Jiraiya- _sensei_ took up another student. I'm glad, maybe someday we can reveal ourselves to him soon."

"Possibly," Obito agreed. "Anyway, why don't you two check into a hotel? Enjoy your time here." _Karasu_ and _Daitenshi_ nodded and stood, leaving.

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Naruto's Apartment, October 10** **th** **)**

"Naruto-kun…" Sakura leaned against the bathroom door, trying her hardest to draw out her roommate. "Please… talk to me Naruto-kun…" Behind her stood Ino, Shikamaru, Shino, and Neji, all of them keeping quiet and allowing Sakura to do the talking. "All of our friends are here, Naruto-kun… We want to go to the festival with you…"

"Go away…" Naruto mumbled from behind the locked door. Tears fell down Sakura's face. He'd been locked behind that door for a full day. He refused to eat, and wouldn't come out even when Sakura sang for him his favorite song. Nobody knew why he wouldn't come out. Except for Sakura. It was their deepest, most treasured secret. He'd told her only a week before, and now she was left to fix someone who had been broken so many years. Every year on October 10th, his birthday, some of the villagers would put down their glares and act upon their hatred for Naruto. Some would beat him. Some would spit on him. No matter what, it was always in a place out of sight from shinobi who might stop them. Sakura leaned against the door and hugged her legs.

"Let's go," Shikamaru whispered to the others, "It's obvious that we won't be any help. In fact, us being here is probably just making things worse." He was the first to leave. The others followed suit not long after, shooting Sakura glances of pity before leaving. Sakura silently cried, mentally berating herself for being unable to help her best friend like he had helped her.

"Naruto-kun…" she whispered, desperately trying one last time. "Please… talk to me… I want to help you…" She slowly reached for the doorknob, not believing that it would open, but it was worth a try. To her surprise, the door opened just a crack. She pried it open and slowly stood, entering the room to see Naruto curled up in the bathtub. Silently, she slowly entered the tub with him, forcing his legs to straighten out to sit on his lap and lean back against him. For a moment, all was quiet save for the soft breathing of the two roommates.

After a few moments, Sakura leaned her head back and looked over at Naruto's face. The boy had his eyes closed, and his mouth was slightly open. It was almost like he was meditating. Or sleeping. Sakura blushed, having never been this close to a boy before. Sure, they had hugged a few times, and Naruto had done that thing they'd seen her mother and father do once while they had been visiting for dinner. But other than that…

"Naruto-kun…" Sakura whispered, suddenly looking down. Her heart was pounding, and her cheeks felt like they were burning. Naruto stirred a little bit, wrapping his arms around her.

"Sakura-chan…" Naruto muttered, taking a deep breath. "What… what are you doing…?" Sakura blushed harder.

"I…" Sakura whispered, then looked up towards Naruto, reaching around with her left arm and pulling his head down towards hers. "I…"

"What are we doing…?"

"I wanna try this…" Sakura admitted. "At first I wanted to do this with Sasuke… But…" Sakura paused and took a deep breath. "I… I don't think I loved him… I mean, I saw how Ino- _buta_ and the other girls thought he was so popular… I wanted to fit in, so badly… I wanted people to pay attention to me and not make fun of me… But… I guess my mind really thought I was in love with Sasuke… But then that mission to _Nami_ … And… when you were the only one who really helped me… Sasuke was so focused on training… I realized it wasn't Sasuke I was in love with anymore…"

"You aren't…?" Naruto asked. Sakura gave him a soft smile.

"It's not Sasuke that I'm lying in a tub with, Naruto-kun…" she whispered in his ear. "Do… do you want to try and go meet up with the others…? I know they'd really like to see you…"

"I'd rather not," Naruto looked away as he spoke, but Sakura pulled his head back to looking at her. "I don't want to get them in trouble for being around me… Who knows what those people would try and pull?"

"Then we can celebrate in here," Sakura told him, bringing their faces closer together. "Just the two of us…" She closed her eyes and felt her lips brush against his. Slowly, they pressed together, Sakura melting into Naruto's arms as their first kiss went on. Naruto's heart seemed close to exploding. The girl he'd loved even before they'd joined the Academy was kissing him! After so long, he'd finally earned her affection. And he was happy. He was a shinobi. He'd made friends. He had a girl who just admitted she liked him instead of Sasuke, and was living with him. It felt like years that their kiss went on, though it only lasted a few minutes. Eventually, the two had to pull away. "I'm your birthday present this year… and the next… and every birthday you'll have in the future." Naruto smiled and hugged the girl.

"It's the best present I've ever gotten."

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Forest Of Death, October 17** **th** **)**

"Only a few more days…" Kaeru mumbled to himself. He was taking a leisurely stroll through the Forest of Death. It had always been the place where he could clear his mind and keep the world from making him go crazy. "Only a few more… and I initiate the second step…" He smiled, knowing that Naruto would be in good hands under Jiraiya. Sasuke would do well under Obito's tutelage. Everything was set except for Hiruzen's death.

 _Why are you doing this…?_ A voice echoed around the forest, causing Kaeru to stop. It was a voice that had been haunting him for the last few days. The voice of Kenkin. _Please don't do this… Why can't you let the world live in peace? Let those boys live normal lives…_

"The world will achieve peace this way," Kaeru defended himself. "They will have to men to look up to, and there will be assured peace."

 _But at what cost?_ Kenkin asked. _Please, don't do this… The boy I loved would have been happy to live a normal life._

"No, this has been the plan from the beginning."

 _That's a lie!_ Kenkin protested. _Before you evolved your_ **Sharingan** _you would have been happy living a normal life! We would have been together and raised Neji-kun ourselves!_

"That's not true!" Kaeru denied. "There's no way we could have pulled that off! Besides… Even if we had, this would have happened anyway. I would still be following my plans."

 _We could have, together…_ Kenkin sighed. _I would have done anything for you… You don't have to do this though… You should live happily with Anko-chan…_

"Enough," Kaeru stated coldly. "I have already made my decision. I must follow through with it."

 _Kaeru-kun…_

"Stop appearing before me," Kaeru demanded. "Your presence is unwanted." Kaeru sighed as he felt a cold chill pass through him, and leave just as quickly as it had appeared. "I'm sorry, Kenkin-chan… But I'm too far gone to go back." As he left, he heard a whisper.

 _"I will see you soon."_

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Event Stadium, October 20** **th** **)**

Hiruzen sat calmly at the VIP booth of the stadium. Beside him sat the Kazekage, the leader of _Sunagakure_. There was something off about his fellow Kage, but Hiruzen couldn't quite tell what. The man, though, seemed to be amusing himself with his personal thoughts as they watched the crowds of people fill the stadium. This was a huge event, and Hiruzen was proud of his _genin_ for making the majority of the passing teams. All other times, the finalists would be pretty even among one or two villages, but this time only one foreign team had made it.

Hiruzen's bright thoughts were drawn back at the thought of what he had to do the next morning. He'd already called a council meeting on the topic of Uchiha Kaeru. While many of the members were hesitant to come to a meeting over simply one issue, the Hokage's orders were absolute. If he deemed this man to be such a large potential threat, they would treat him as such. It wasn't long until the stadium was full, and the _genin_ had arrived. Hiruzen had stifled a chuckle at seeing Sakura drag a still very tired Naruto to the stadium. All ten contestants stood in a line in the center of the field. Hiruzen stood and practically read off the greeting speech. He'd done this so often that he could play this off in his sleep. A very injured Hayate stood beside him as his replacement, Shiranui Genma, introduced himself as the proctor of the third portion of the exam. With that, he ordered the remaining _genin_ to the competitor's section of the crowd as Temari and Kisa took the field. Kisa had changed her clothes to that similar of a hunter nin, except primarily black with white trimmings. She also wore iron guards on her wrists and shins, and what liked like combat boots. While not unfit for shinobi, they rarely wore anything except sandals. Kisa had her hair held back in a ponytail, and her eyes spoke volumes of her confidence. Temari, however, would not underestimate her opponent. She hadn't seen much of the fight during the preliminaries. Mostly because hers and her sister's fights hadn't been anything less than slaughter. She readied her weapon on her shoulder, ready to use at a single moment. She would not be caught unawares by this girl.

 **XXXXX**

Up in the stands, a young girl sat by her father, and the rest of her clan. Her eyes focused on the name of the Konoha _genin._ "Otou-sama," she spoke up. "Who is that girl?" Hiashi stared hard at the young woman standing down against the _Suna_ nin.

"The Orihime," Hiashi started, "are a family of ninja that moved into Konohagakure a number of years ago." He crossed his arms. "They are barbaric, relying not on weapons or Ninjutsu, but solely on Taijutsu and their own kekkei genkai."

"What's that, otou-sama?" the young girl asked. Hiashi looked down at the girl.

"That, Hanabi-chan," he informed, "is something called _**Akuun**_ **(Bad Luck)**."

" _ **Akuun**_?"

"The Orihime's kekkei genkai, _**Akuun**_ , is a passive kekkei genkai," Hizashi explained from behind the two. "It affects the people the Orihime deem enemies. It's like a passive Genjutsu. It forces their enemies to make mistakes. A second too late on a punch. An unnoticed action off to the side. Sometimes even as unlucky as the enemy going under cardiac arrest right on the spot. It's always seemingly random, but one thing is for sure." Hizashi gave the _Suna_ nin a pitying look. "Nobody can combat bad luck. Anyone who tries will fail. It's why the Orihime Clan is so feared."

"Why haven't I heard of them, then?" asked Hanabi.

"They are not a large family," Hiashi answered. "Their children have extremely low fertility. They're lucky if they can even manage out three or four children per generation. I'm surprised to hear they had birthed twins."

"Seems like their bad luck is a double edged sword," Hizashi joked.

 **XXXXX**

 **Sabaku no Temari VS Orihime Kisa**

" _Hajime_!"

Temari leaped back as Kisa burst forward, cracks appearing in the spot where the girl had been standing. Temari unleashed her weapon in its full glory, a huge battle fan with three circles equidistant from one another and the two sides. The blonde spun and swung her fan, unleashing a huge gust of wind towards the oncoming girl. Kisa simply seemed to step to the side, rearing her arm back for a strong strike. A loud _CRACK!_ Filled the arena as Kisa's fist struck Temari's fan. The blonde grimaced as she tried to push back on the sheer force this girl was presenting. Her eyes widened as she felt herself being pushed back on the ground, her feet digging into the earth. Sending some chakra into her arms and upper torso, Temari swung her fan in order to get Kisa to back off a little bit. However, she felt that instead of her arms strengthening, they weakened enough for Kisa to break through her defense.

 _What the hell!?_ Temari screamed in her head, narrowly avoiding a strike to the face by leaping back even further. _Shit, what's going on with me!?_ Kisa smirked as she charged forward at Temari again. The blonde's look hardened as she swept up another gust of wind towards her opponent. _She's doing something to me. I knew something was wrong!_ Temari growled as the wind she sent out just skimmed by the girl. She knew her aim had been perfect. Missing should have been impossible! She didn't have time to scold herself more as she twisted away from another punch thrown by her opponent. Kisa smirked and twisted her body, sending out a roundhouse kick that caught the blonde in the side of her stomach knocking the air from her lungs.

"Too easy," Kisa taunted as Temari attempted to grab onto the girl's leg. Her motions were a second too slow, however, as she saw Kisa throw another punch ae her face. Temari was forced to grab the oncoming fist. Smirking, Kisa jumped up and slammed both of her feet into Temari's stomach, launching herself back and sending the blonde girl flying in the other direction. Temari quickly righted herself and skidded on the ground, panting. How was she so exhausted!? The smug grin that Kisa was giving her wasn't helping, either! "Time to end this." Kisa grinned and charged at Temari. The blonde raised her fan up to block the strike. Her eyes widened as her fan _broke_ under the punch, and Kisa's fist slammed into Temari's face, knocking her out. The Orihime smirked and spat on Temari's unconscious body. "Weakling." As Genma announced Kisa the winner, the next set of names appeared on the screen.

 **Hyuuga Neji VS. Hyuuga Hinata**

 **XXXXX**

 **A/N: sorry about the short chapter. As much as I hate to say it, this one was mostly filler. I just wanted to get a few things in before the Finals. And this will take a while. I've never been good and writing long, drawn out fights, so be patient while I try to do them some justice.**


	9. Chapter Five And A Half: First Date

**Don't own it.**

"Regular Speak"

" _Emphasized Speak"_

" _ **Multiple Shouting/Jutsu"**_

" **Bijuu/Demon Speak"**

 _Thoughts/Japanese Words_

 _ **Bijuu/Demon/Inner-Sakura Thoughts**_

 **XXXXX**

 **Chapter Six and a Half: First Date**

 **XXXXX**

 **(Konohagakure, Naruto's Apartment, October 11** **th** **, 14 Years After Kyuubi)**

Sakura woke up enveloped in warmth. She was laying down on something firm, but very warm. Not thinking, she snuggled in closer to the warm object, letting out a mewl of contentment. She froze, however, when the object snuggled back. Slowly, the events of the night before filled her mind. Sakura sighed, opening her eyes and seeing that she was laying on top of Naruto. In their bathtub. The pink haired girl blinked. Naruto was her boyfriend now right? She'd pretty much said she was his, right? And he didn't say 'no'. That must mean she was his girlfriend. Or his object, but she wasn't ready for _that_ , and she probably never would be.

"S-Sakura-chan…?" Naruto mumbled, his eyes struggling to open. They were still a bit red and puffy from the night before, when she'd pretty much given him improvised therapy. She'd listened to his life story, and how badly he'd had it. Sakura was convinced that Naruto had it worse than Sasuke. At least their broody friend had known his own family. At least he'd had people pay attention to him. Naruto was alone from day one. "What happened…?"

"We fell asleep, doofus," she mumbled, still not quite awake. While not as bad as Naruto, Sakura wasn't a morning person either. Unfortunately, the day beckoned and Sakura slowly lifted herself off of her blond boyfriend, stretching as she rose and rolled out over the side of the tub. "Ugh… How late were we up…? Don't answer that. Why don't you get all cleaned up and I'll make some breakfast." Sakura sat up and caught the nod that Naruto had given her. She smirked, seeing that his eyes were still shut. "And if you fall back asleep I'll just turn on the cold water on you!" Naruto's bleary eyes widened.

" _H-Hai_ Sakura-chan!" Naruto quickly sat up, fumbling with his clothes as he saw Sakura leave the bathroom. Sakura smiled at his tone, casually making her way to the small kitchen. She opened the fridge and pulled out a carton of eggs and a few vegetables she'd gotten a few days back. It had taken a lot of convincing on her part to get Naruto to try vegetables. In fact, he still resisted some of them. The only veggies and fruits she'd managed to get him to try were small amounts of green peppers, onions, and some lettuce after revealing to him that their rabbits preferred said food. On occasion she'd gotten him to eat some green beans, but that had only been twice so far.

Sakura leaned back against the counter as she whisked the egg yolks in a mug with a fork. Making breakfast and washing the clothes were just habit to her, now. After breakfast she'd make Naruto a bento lunch and clean the dishes. Maybe she'd go to the library and rent some books. After that several hour trip she would probably tidy up the house, buy groceries, or spend time with any of her friends that were back from missions. In the evenings she'd go to the Bent Shuriken and sing for a few hours to earn her weekly pay. The pink haired girl blinked in realization as she poured the yolk onto the heated skillet on the stove. She was a housewife. It wasn't a particularly bad position. In fact, she quite liked this quiet life. Her main motivation to be a ninja was to follow Sasuke. Now that she was Naruto's… she was pretty happy staying at home and living a danger free life. He was an idiot, sure, but he was her idiot. Besides, she had been working with him on free days to help him gain some of her book smarts. Even when retired as a shinobi she still considered herself a part of Team Seven, even if only in spirit. She heard Naruto turn off the water as she finished the first omelet and quickly started on the second. Sure, she knew that such a time consuming breakfast would mean he'd probably have lunch at Ichiraku's, but every time he ate her food… he was always so sweet and complimented her.

"Is breakfast ready yet, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked as he rounded the corner into the kitchen, slipping his shirt on as he entered. Sakura took a moment to admire his physique.

"Not yet, Naruto-kun," she replied, "give me a moment." Sakura smiled as she felt Naruto wrap his arms around her. "Naruto-ku~un…" she purred, "don't you have to get ready for training today?"

" _Ero-sennin_ (Pervy Sage) said I have today off," Naruto replied. Sakura's smile widened. "So I can spend the day with you!"

"Good!" Sakura replied. "Because today we're going on a date."

"A… A date…?" Naruto's happy mood suddenly seemed to drop. Sakura frowned.

"Is that so bad?" she asked worriedly. "You've always wanted to go on a date with me, right?" Naruto nodded dumbly. "H-Hey… what's wrong?"

"Aren't… Aren't you worried about being seen with the _Jinchuriki_ …?" he asked. Sakura frowned and laid the second omelet on her plate.

"If I was so worried, I wouldn't be living with you still," she said, picking up a plate and setting it on the nearby table. She went back and repeated the process with the second plate. "Now we're going on a date tonight. No getting your way out of it!"

"Hai, Sakura-chan!"

"Now stop standing there like a doofus and help me set up breakfast!"

 **XXXXX**

Sakura smiled as she walked down the main street of the village, holding onto Naruto's right arm with her left. She leaned onto his shoulder, hoping to relax her tense boyfriend. Naruto was looking around warily. It was dark out, and he couldn't be sure if some drunk would try to harm him or Sakura. The day after his birthday was usually just as dangerous as the tenth. To be honest, Naruto really would have rather stayed at home with Sakura. They had sat on the balcony of his apartment for most of the day, reading and taking in each other's presence. It had taken a long time for Sakura to convince him that reading was enjoyable, but she had managed it. That wasn't to say it was his favorite hobby, but it had its uses for when Sakura was unwilling to let him train in his spare time or it was too early or late to do anything else. Before they had left, he was engaged in reading a book of one man whose body was inhabited by the man, and his alter ego. He didn't understand a lot of it, which was why Sakura was there to help him.

"Just relax, Naruto-kun," Sakura whispered just loud enough for him to hear. She was wearing a light pink dress that had glitter on it. It had thin straps, and reached down to her knees. While most of Sakura's clothing was more or less identical, she had a few pieces of formal wear that her parents had forced upon her during dinner parties. "Everything will be fine. It's just a movie and dinner. The movie will be dark so no one can see us and at dinner we can take a booth off to the side."

" _H-Hai_ ," Naruto swallowed nervously. He hadn't much formal wear, so Naruto was dressed up in a long pair of khaki cargo pants and a black t-shirt. Sakura had threatened to burn his orange pants and jumpsuit if he even suggested wearing them. "Ah… what movies are playing, anyway?" Sakura couldn't help but give him a surprised glance, before realizing that he had been training the last few weeks.

"The two in the theater are The Iron Man and The _Kyodaina_ (Titanic)," Sakura replied simply, having passed the theater daily. "And I've decided we'll see The _Kyodaina_."

"E-Ehh?" Naruto protested, earning a raspberry from Sakura.

"It's a date, silly! Since you're too dense to ask me what movie I'd want to see, I've decided for us!"

"I'd totally ask what you want to watch, _dattebayo_!" Naruto argued, his nervousness forgotten. Sakura smiled sweetly and rolled her eyes.

"Oh, of course!" Sakura teased, "How could I _ever_ forget how much of a perfect _gentleman_ my Naru-kun is?" Naruto lightly steamed before laughing a little as the two arrived at the theater.

 **XXXXX**

Naruto had to hold himself back from digging in. He could feel the pointed glares staring at the back of his head. He and Sakura had been hard pressed to find a restaurant that would allow him in. Fortunately, the owner of the _Nichibotsu Yama_ (Sunset Mountain) was an immigrant from _Kaminari no Kuni_ (Land of Lightning), and had little knowledge of Naruto's status of _Jinchuriki_. As such, they were having a well prepared meal of foreign dishes as they sat across from one another in a semi-formal restaurant. Naruto was having steamed noodles with chopped up baked chicken and grilled tomatoes. Sakura was having a plate of brown rice with a light barbeque sauce, mixed in with lamb and peas. Sakura had ordered for the both of them. While Sakura was still on a light diet, she had decided to push it aside for the night. It wouldn't do for her to not enjoy her meal alongside Naruto.

"So, uh…" Sakura tried to start conversation. "How… how has training been?" Naruto seemed to perk up at this, but hesitated. He gave Sakura a wary look.

" _Ano_ …" he trailed off. "Are you sure you want to talk about that during a date, Sakura-chan?" Sakura's expression dimmed a bit, but she seemed a little proud that he'd considered her wants over his excitement.

"Yeah, you're right," she agreed. "Well, how about that movie? It was pretty nice, I think." Naruto's face visibly cringed, no matter how hard he tried to hide it. Sakura's expression went deadpan. "What?"

"It… It was kinda boring…" Naruto admitted nervously. He really hadn't enjoyed it all that much. Romance and sappy stuff went over his head pretty easily, so he had no idea what was going on half the time. Not to mention that boat sank. The blonde shivered at the thought. He was _never_ going on a boat for the rest of his life. "And I really didn't get any of it." Sakura sighed in response, a bit disappointed.

"I guess… we really didn't think this through huh?" she asked. "We don't really have that much in common…" Naruto made a disappointed grunt. "Sorry… I didn't expect it to get so stale…" Naruto had been her saving grace, yes. She love him for staying with her, yes. But she realized that they didn't have all that much to talk about. She was always helping him and he was always helping her. While certainly nice, it wasn't anything overly special. It was what they did. Perhaps, in another world, they could have waited longer. In another world, Sakura hadn't lost her arm, and Kaeru hadn't been their _Jounin-sensei_. Where they would fight together side by side and grow a strong bond over time.

The two ate in silence, and once finished, walked home together in silence. Both unsure of what to say to the other. Naruto's lingering thoughts doubted that he and Sakura could even work. Sakura's thoughts were similar. They were just too different. Naruto craved attention, and now he didn't know what to do with it. Sakura wanted to be appreciated, and now wasn't sure what else to do for it.

As they entered Naruto's apartment, they gave each other a passing glance before sitting down on the small, worn out couch. It wasn't much, but it was comfortable. Both of them picked up a book from the table in front of them, Sakura's being a romance novel between a shinobi and a mythical beast, and Naruto's being a thriller of an unknown creature that ate children. After a while, their eyelids began to droop. Sakura had since leaned over, her head resting on Naruto's shoulder, eyes glued to her book. Naruto, in return, had wrapped his arm around her waist as he read his own book on his lap. He was actually fairly interested in the story, which Sakura had been forced to explain every few minutes. Finally, Naruto spoke.

"Sakura-chan?" his voice was soft.

"Mm?"

"I think we found something in common we like," he pointed out.

"Books?"

"Spending time together," he said. "I like… I like you being here. With me." Sakura giggled a little bit, setting her book down.

"I like being with you, too," she yawned as she spoke. "Maybe we don't need words. We just need to be around each other."

"But I _like_ words," Naruto complained.

"Just shut up and hold me," Sakura replied, kissing his cheek and snuggling up next to her blonde. Naruto smiled, and did as she said. Like any good man.

 **XXXXX**

 **A/N: Sorry it's so short! Holidays and finals were kicking my ass! I should have some more time in a few weeks but for now I'm busy as balls! Next chapter should be the continuation of the Chunin Exams. I hope you liked this fluff!**


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